Probation
by Sarabella529
Summary: Edward's a cop! And guess who he pulls over? Miss Bella Swan! She's mad and he's acting weird. Can she get over the fact that it was all a misunderstanding and find love with an unlikely suspect? All human. Vamps later. BxE AxJ EmxR
1. Strawberry Slushie

**A/N: This is my first fanfic! I randomly got the idea one day driving while drinking a slushie. No way! I hope you like it.**

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Twilight in any form or fashion.

PROBATION

"Mmmm…" was the only word to describe the delicious strawberry slushie I just bought while gassing up my ancient, bulbous, red truck. I didn't realize how thirsty I was until I saw I had chugged at least half of it on my walk back to the truck. Oh well, at least I didn't get a brain freeze.

Once seated, I turned the key in the ignition, only to be rewarded by the chaotic rumbles of my truck coming to life. Most girls my age would be horrified at the sight of a giant like mine, but not me. I loved the big, rusty monster.

Driving through Forks is boring most of the time. The only scenery is the dark skies and lush green trees. I miss the bright, sunny skies of Arizona and the open spaces. But most of all, I miss the dry climate. A person can go out in normal clothing and have fun outside, _without_ the rain clouds drifting by overhead. But not in Forks, I never leave the house without donning my raincoat, my second skin. However, Forks isn't a complete lost cause, when the sun _does_ shine, it can be very pretty.

Taking another sip of my slushie, I noticed a police cruiser sitting off to the side of the road. My thoughts went directly to Charlie. My father, the police chief. Not having to be driven around in the cruiser is definitely an advantage to driving my truck. But I was pulled out of my thought by a flash of red and blue lights. Crap!

I pulled over to the side of the deserted road, hoping I made the right decision. They always tell you to only pull over where you fell safe. But then again, how unsafe can the guy be? My father probably helped hire him.

He sat in his cruiser for what felt like a lifetime, but was really only about thirty seconds. By now I was beyond nervous. I had never been pulled over before. What could he have possible pulled me over for?

Finally, the driver door opened. From what I could make out by looking through my side mirror, he was young, slender, and had bronze hair. Slowly he made his way over to my window, stopping once to write down my license plate number. Could he walk any slower? The suspense is killing me!

"May I see your license and registration, please?" He asked once he made it to my window. Up close I could tell he was attractive, _very_ attractive with pale skin and a strong jaw line. His bronze hair was a complete mess, only adding to his stunning looks. Then, I stared into his intense, piercing green eyes. I felt lost, yet somehow well.

"Excuse me miss, your license and registration?" Shoot! I had been staring at him. My mouth was probably hanging open too! Completely embarrassed by my mistake, my cheeks flushed a warm red.

"Ummm…hold on," I said as I fumbled around for my wallet. I unclasped the side and located my license. I then opened the glove compartment and collected the registration papers.

"What exactly is the problem officer?" I asked while handing him my papers. With a quick glance, he ignored my question and studied my information. After a minute, I repeated my question. His eyes met mine once again, this time filled with uncertainty. He then proceeded to look in the cab of my truck.

"What is that?" He asked pointing to my melted beverage.

"A slushie." Why would he care?

"May I see it?" What! Is this guy crazy? Maybe Charlie messed up by hiring this one.

"Ummm, I guess. Why?" I said handing him the drink.

"I need to make sure there is no alcohol in there." He mumbled while lifting the top and smelling the contents. This is some weird dude.

"Any booze in there officer?" I asked, not hiding my annoyance.

He looked up disappointed and shook his head no. Why would he be disappointed there was no alcohol in the drink? Shouldn't he be pleased? He then proceeded to take his ticket book out and start writing. I sat there dumb founded for a minute processing what was happening.

"Excuse me? What are you doing?" I asked incredulously.

"I'm writing you a ticket."

"I can see that! But for _what_?" I asked, almost yelling. He looked me in the eyes, seeming to think about something. What is the world is he thinking about now! He should know what the ticket is for. Then, he looked like he made a decision.

"You were speeding," was all he said. Huh? Was I hearing him correctly?

"What? The speed limit for this street is thirty. I was _going_ thirty."

"You were going thirty-five."

"No, you've got it wrong. I _never_ drive over thirty. My truck would die at fifty!"

"Well, you just went over thirty." He said as he tore off the ticket and handed it to me. I didn't take it. I _wasn't_ going to take it. But he held it there, in my window for at least a minute. He finally seemed to realize I wasn't going to take it, so he sat it on my dashboard.

"I would advise you not to lose that ticket. Your court date will be May 29th, so be prepared to pay the fine of seventy-five dollars, or you will be forced to pay double. Drive home safely." And with that he left. With him left my last ounce of patience. I let out a loud "umph" and hit the steering wheel with my hands. He was so wrong! I didn't go over thirty! Stupid gorgeous cop!

I realized he was still behind me, waiting for me to leave first. So I did. I, rather forcefully, turned the key in the ignition and drove off, careful not to go over twenty-five.

Finally, I made it home. I grabbed my wallet, the ticket, and my drink and went inside, throwing the stupid slushie away once in the kitchen. I stared out the kitchen window, completely lost in thought, the tears threatening to spill onto my cheeks. Why would he do that? Why would he lie? For whatever the reason, I was mad. He had no right…

A police cruiser pulled up into the driveway. Instantly my anger flared, but as suddenly as it did, it vanished. It was quickly replaced by fear. That was Charlie outside, not the stupid, handsome pig from earlier. I am going to have to tell him. This is going to be a long night.

**A/N: The End...of chapter one. It was short. The next chapter will hopefully be longer.**


	2. Quotas

**A/N: Give my Edward a chance. He starts out OOC (come on, he's a COP), but I think he slowly grows into character. Don't give up. I plan on making him more...Edwardy in the future. I just have to work up to it. I have never written as him.**

EPOV

Sitting on the side of the road, scanning the speed of citizens driving by sounds like a laid back, easy job. Right? Not! The boredom ruins the whole experience, especially in a town like Forks. Everyday for the past week I have sat in the exact same spot with my radar gun doing nothing. Sometimes, I wonder if joining the police force was the best choice. Maybe I should just quit and focus solely on college and getting my degree in music.

Not many people have heard of a part time police job, but here in the town of Forks, it is not necessary to have twenty full time police officers. There's just not that much crime around here to begin with. So Chief Swan willingly takes in eager part time rookies, shows them the ropes, and then throws them out to do the meager tasks, such as scanning the speed of driving citizens. That was myself three months ago, when I decided it was time to get a respectable job and pay my own expenses, even if I still live with my adoptive family.

Of course, this job isn't just a walk in the park either. An officer, such as myself, still has a quota of tickets to fill and turn in by the end of the shift. The quota isn't a very large number, like in New York City, Chicago, or any other city larger than Forks. But it still has to be filled. And that, can sometimes get a little tedious. Especially since Forks is a fairly safe town. The only real crime this city sees is the occasional drunk, the newly licensed teen, or the rare out-of-towners we sometimes receive during the hunting season.

But lately I haven't been able to fill my quota and Chief Swan has been hounding me to get it done. Since they don't get filled, the Chief has suspected me of snoozing on the job, or whatever the lazy guys do. For the past few days, he has threatened to fire me, which I can't afford to let happen.

Today is not any better. It's 5:45 pm, I get off at 6:00 pm, and I still have not written any tickets. Chief Swan is not going to believe me when I tell him the truth, which is that barely anybody has driven down this street today. And none of them were breaking any laws. I can't get fired

At that point a red truck turned the corner. Jackpot! Quickly I checked my radar gun looking for any possibility that this was a speeder…thirty miles per hour, crap!

Oh well, that truck appears to be old and decrepit anyways, maybe there will be an obvious flaw with it that I can write a quick ticket for. As the truck passed me I quickly searched for any malfunction, but was disappointed to find none. Maybe if I take a closer look…

I turned on my lights, signaling the driver to pull over. There was no turning back now. I had to find a flaw and find it fast. I need something to bring back to the Chief so that I get to keep my job.

Instantly the driver noticed my lights, probably starting to panic. They pulled over to the side of the road. Maybe I could just find something to give them a warning about.

I pulled up behind the monster of a vehicle, searching determinedly to find a busted taillight, expired license plate, or even a missing hubcap I could warn them about. But there was nothing!

After a few moments of contemplation, I decided to get out and confront the driver. Maybe I'll get lucky and find out they were actually drunk!

I took out my note pad and started my slow procession to the driver's side window, stopping once to write down the license plate number. Once finished, I continued my walk, continuously scanning the vehicle. Finally, I reached the window, instantly regretting my decision to pull _this_ car over.

In the drivers seat was a girl—no, a woman—probably no older than me, with pale skin, mahogany brown, wavy hair that fell around her heart-shaped face beautifully. Her most outstanding feature had to be her deep, chocolate brown eyes. As I stared into those dark orbs, I felt like I could look into her soul, learning everything about her, and still want more.

"May I see your license and registration, please?" I asked, hoping she couldn't hear the tremors that threatened to break my voice. Never before have I been in the presence of someone so exquisitely beautiful.

She seemed to be lost in my eyes also, but then again, that could be wishful thinking on my part. I then noticed how nervous she seemed. I felt awful knowing I was the cause of making someone so breathtaking uncomfortable. I should do something to calm her down.

"Excuse me miss, your license and registration?" Smooth Edward! But I was rewarded with a warm blush that appeared across her cheeks. Did I have that effect on her?

"Ummm…hold on," she said as she fumbled around for her information. I took this free moment to check for anything that I might have missed upon my initial search. Nothing yet…

She then turned around, papers in hand. As she gave them to me, she asked the currently dreaded question I had no answer to.

"What exactly is the problem officer?" I gave her a quick glance and looked down at her license. Isabella Swan…eighteen years of age…birth date September 13th…expiration date in a little over six months…nothing useful here. I turned my eyes to her registration papers. I could feel her gaze watching my every move, waiting for my nonexistent reply. _Why this car?_ I internally cursed myself. Even the registration offered no help at all. Then, after growing impatient with my act of ignoring her, she asked her question again. I had no choice but to say _something_!

I looked up, searching in her eyes to see if there was any way I could get out of this mess. Then I shifted my eyes to the cab of her truck. Immediately I saw a melting slushie. It was a far stretch, but I was desperate. Desperate for what? Not wanting to look like a fool for pulling this beautiful woman over for nothing. That must be it.

"What is that?" I asked pointing to the melted beverage.

"A slushie." She replied giving me a slightly confused look.

"May I see it?" One look at her face told me she thought I was an idiot. Oh well, no going back now…

"Ummm, I guess. Why?" She asked handing me the drink.

"I need to make sure there is no alcohol in there." I mumbled, trying to keep some dignity, while lifting the top and smelling the contents. Strawberry, at least she has good taste…

"Any booze in there, officer?" She asked in a highly annoyed voice.

I nodded my head no, trying to hide my disappointment and desperation. Oh well, may as well get this over with. I took out my ticket book and started writing her a ticket for speeding, the only thing she may fall for. I really needed a ticket to take back to the Chief. I couldn't afford to lose this job.

"Excuse me? What are you doing?" She asked. If only looks could kill…

"I'm writing you a ticket." I mumbled.

"I can see that! But for _what_?" She asked, practically yelling. I could tell by looking into her eyes that her rage was building quickly. Should I really be doing this? No, I shouldn't, but I was in too deep now. All I can do now is write the ticket and hope she pays the fine peacefully. I'll just send her a check in the mail to repay her, but I have to continue with what I was doing. I have never felt more foolish in my life.

"You were speeding."

"What? The speed limit for this street is thirty. I was _going_ thirty."

"You were going thirty-five."

"No, you've got it wrong. I _never_ drive over thirty. My truck would die at fifty!"

"Well, you just went over thirty." I lied as I tore the ticket off and handed it to her. She stared at the ticket, then glanced up at me as if to say _"Go ahead, make me take it."_ All I could do was sit it on her dashboard, hoping it wouldn't fly away when she drove off.

"I would advise you not to lose that ticket. Your court date will be May 29th, so be prepared to pay the fine of seventy-five dollars, or you will be forced to pay double. Drive home safely." And with that, I walked back to my cruiser, thinking of how big a mistake I just made. _You wrote that poor woman a ticket with a fine of seventy-five dollars to save you own hide! You're a monster!_

I sat behind her—behind _Bella_—until she decided to leave. The least I could do was sit there and keep her safe in case someone tried to carjack her. Then I most certainly would be a monster! Finally, she started the rather loud engine and drove off at a slower pace than before.

When her truck disappeared around the corner, I decided to head back to the station, hopefully finding out I get to keep my job. Perhaps showing Chief Swan…_Swan!_ _Isabella Swan!_ Oh my gosh, how could I have missed that? They have to be related. There is no way you would find two unrelated Swans in this small town. I'm screwed!

By that time, I was so nervous I had to pull the cruiser over and step outside to get some air. The cool breeze helped to settle my nerves infinitesimally. I pinched the bridge of my nose and massaged the area gently, hoping to prevent a headache. How could I have been so carelessly foolish? I must have been too desperate to notice. I am definitely stuck in the middle of a horrid mess!

**A/N: Quotas, not sure if cops actually have them, but they do in my story. So just go along with it. Just so you know, he really regrets doing it. It was a stupid unplanned action to keep his job. And in no way do I intend anything bad on police officers.**


	3. Telling Charlie

**A/N: Enjoy**

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Twilight :(

BPOV

"Bella, are you here?" Charlie asked after entering the door, while hanging up his belt and jacket.

Like someone else with a big, red truck is here. "Yeah, I'm in the kitchen."

Charlie soon trudged through the doorway, taking a seat at the table, laying his head upon his hands.

"How was work?" I tried to be a good supportive daughter.

He sighed, lifting his head, staring blankly at the microwave. "Same as usual. It's just been a tiring day, that's all. What's in the microwave?"

"Left over lasagna." I decided to slowly push the topic at hand. "Hey dad, do you know an Officer Cullen. Young, messy, bronze hair, green eyes…"

He nodded his head, confirming he did indeed know Officer Cullen. "Yes, why?"

"Well…I met him today." I replied meekly, the fear starting to once again rise.

"I thought you went to Port Angeles with Angela?" Confusion was clearly written across his face.

"I did. We were there for most of the day. Saw a movie, had lunch, shopped…"

"Oh…then how did you meet Edward? He was on duty today."

"Yeah, I know." I mumbled under my breath so Charlie couldn't hear. "Ummm…well…he kinda…pulled me over and…gave me a…ticket?" The thick emotions turned my sentence into a question.

"He what? When? What for?"

"Settle down. It's not my fault. He pulled me over earlier today, on my way home. He wrote me a ticket for speeding, thirty-five in a thirty."  
"You—"

"But dad, I was only going thirty. I wasn't speeding." After finishing, the regret started to kick in. Charlie's face had gained a little color from the evident anger, at whom I'm not sure. I felt bad knowing he's not in the best health altogether. Slowly he calmed down and sighed.

"Ok, I believe you. Maybe he messed up. Edward is a good guy. Surely it is a misunderstanding. When do you go to court? How much is the fine? Seventy-five?"

"May 29th is the court date and yes, the fine is seventy-five."

"The 29th, that's Monday, one weekend away. Of course this is Forks, the courts aren't exactly filled to the brim with speeders. Well, I am sure we can discuss this in court. I would talk to Edward about it, but I am going fishing at Billy's this weekend."

"That's fine dad. It'll get settled somehow." Hopefully…

--

MPOV Houston, TX

I took a quick moment to search the faces of the dead that lie at my feet. Most of them were mine. Bodies dismantled and ripped to shreds. Another observation was the numbers. Ten to fifteen…nine to fifteen! There is no way to defend this area, we need to retreat. I swiftly scanned the commotion in search for my comrades. Finally, I saw them.

"Nettie! Lucy! Come quick!" And with that I ran. I never looked back to see if Nettie or Lucy were following, or if any soldiers had followed. All I knew or cared about was revenge. I would increase my numbers greatly and mar Benito's forces.

"Maria!" I turned instinctively at the sound of my name. Nettie and Lucy caught up to me and we sped along the plains a safe distance from the currently waging war—unless it's already over. Maria none, Benito three…the score _will_ even out one day.

To my left I noticed Nettie's recently tight bun of blonde hair was disheveled, multiple strands falling around her face. It wasn't a bad look for her…considering we just left a war.

Towering in height beside Nettie was Lucy. Her blonde hair too was messy, but her clothes were also practically torn to shreds, leaving scars where the venom made contact with her flesh. Out of the three of us, Lucy is the most careless, Nettie is the girliest, and I am the one in charge.

"What are we going to do?" Nettie asked suddenly, fear clouding her face.

"We are going to rebuild and take Benito down." I said with as much confidence as possible.

"Where?" Lucy finally adding to the discussion, mindlessly rubbing her newly acquired scars. "Benito controls most of the south. How will we rebuild here when his forces are everywhere?"

"Easy. We don't rebuild here." I said.

"What? Where?" Both Nettie and Lucy asked.

I replied with a smug smile and a chuckle, "The North…"

**A/N: Short, but sweet. Vamps! That's all I could squeak out tonight. The next one will be longer. I'll hopefully get 4 up tomorrow. Then the next chapter will probably be after the weekend. I'm going to a chalet in the mountains for a friend's birthday. **


	4. A Date With the Courts

**A/N: I know the last bit of the last chapter was confusing, but it has it's purpose. And don't worry, this story's main theme _is_ Bella and Edward. MPOV was Maria's pov.**

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Twilight. But I do own Perry...which isn't saying much :(

BPOV

The weekend went by agonizingly slow, especially since I knew what was in store for me Monday morning, or should I say today. My mind was practically scattered. I couldn't allow myself to think about the situation too much, or I would find my temper flaring at the thought of the injustice. But anger was never my initial reaction when I thought of Officer Cullen. My heart rate would quicken and butterflies would appear. His beauty and perfection would surely stick with me throughout this whole ordeal, preventing me from disliking him as much as I would like to.

Everything about him reeked of perfection: his hair, his scent, his voice, and his _eyes_. The only visible flaw that I could find is his possible blindness, because that man cannot read a radar gun. Obviously. I found that out first hand.

"Bella?" Charlie shouted from downstairs.

"Hold on, I'll be down in a minute." I replied, slipping the only court worthy shirt I own over my tank top. I was wearing a midnight blue three quarter sleeve blouse, black slacks and flats. No heels for me! I then took a look at myself in my mirror, criticizing my appearance. My large, brown eyes looked slightly sunk in with light bags under them, pointing out that I haven't gotten much sleep since Friday night. And my rosy lips looked too large for my face, contrasting weirdly with my pale skin. _Oh well, I am as presentable as I will ever be for a day like this,_ I thought as I made my way carefully down to Charlie.

--

EPOV

Today I was going to see _her._ The gorgeous woman I ruined any chance with by pulling her over and giving her a ticket. She'll probably ignore me at all costs today. I wouldn't blame her. Nobody offends an angel and gets off free.

Chief Swan might also be there today. I didn't see him over the weekend. _I wonder if he knows I wrote the ticket?_ Probably. No doubt our friendship will be strained for a few days…weeks…_months?_ I hope not! Hopefully though, things will return to normal, that is, if I'm at this job much longer.

I checked the clock…8:37 am. Well, I should probably leave now so I can make it there before 9:00. I grabbed my keys and walked out to my car. Once inside, I played the Linkin Park CD Alice bought me for Christmas, and began my journey to the courthouse.

Before becoming a cop, I was quite the speed demon. Normal speed for me back then was _twice_ the speed limit! But now that I am an officer of the law, speeding is out of the question. I have to set an example for the few citizens in Forks that actually get out on the road and see me.

I pulled into the courthouse parking lot, which was only occupied by a few cars randomly splotched throughout the area. After some careful searching, I was slightly disappointed that I didn't see the red, monster of a truck I pulled over last Friday. I could feel the rain start to sprinkle, so I rushed my pace a little, making it to the courthouse door in record time.

Upon entering, I felt a gush of warm air. _At least we won't freeze._ I looked to my left to find a secretary staring in my direction. Apparently confusion was displayed on my face because she asked, "Do you need any help?" in an _overly_ helpful voice.

"Yes, I need the courtroom for Judge Perry, please." I politely asked.

"Judge Perry is…"she took a glance at her notebook in front of her, which happened to be covered with the name 'Mike', "down the hall to your left, second set of doors on your right." She finished by batting her eyes, which had nowhere near the effect of Isabella's.

"Thank you." I said as I turned to leave.

"Wait! What is your name?" she asked.

"Edward." I replied, trying to end the conversation.

"My name is Jessica. I've seen you somewhere before, haven't I?" she said, acting too sweet and innocent.

"I don't know."

"Oh wait! You're a cop. Now I remember, I saw you Friday sitting on the side of the road in a cruiser."

"Oh, really?" I asked with fake enthusiasm.

"Yeah, I had just gotten off work, which was around…4:30 pm. I also get off at that time _today_." She said with a vicious smile.

"Well, I hope you have fun. See ya!" Crap! I could've pulled her over, instead of Isabella. Now I really feel foolish. Oh well…

After finally escaping the clutches of Jessica, I made my way down the left hall, stopping before the second door on my right. I glanced at my watch, which read 8:55.

I pushed on the door, and it slowly swung open. You would think that they would grease the hinges or something. Ha…but what's the point, they probably rarely use the courtrooms, once a week for the occasional speeder?

Once inside the toasty courtroom I scanned the room, my gaze instantly falling upon the face of an angel, an exquisite beauty with chocolaty, brown eyes, creamy white skin, and luscious red lips.

As soon as her eyes fell upon mine, a tiny smile played and tugged at her lips, followed quickly by a warm red blush. But all too soon, her soft gaze hardened and her blush disappeared, leaving me feeling hollow and slightly…depressed. There was no denying that I had some sort of attraction for this woman.

Suddenly, a door swung open at the front of the courts, taking Isabella's gaze off of me. A security guard came through first, followed by Judge Perry, who didn't have the best reputation. Her temper was short, causing her to dish out punishment sooner than most judges. Now, more than ever did I regret my decision. I truly hope Isabella does fine.

"All rise for the honorable Judge Perry." Stated the security guard.

Everyone in the courtroom rose—all seven of us—while Judge Perry made her way to her seat.

"You may be seated."

The courtroom was silent while Judge Perry looked over a file in her hands. Then she looked up and spoke, "Isabella Marie Swan, you appear in court today for a ticket written on Friday, May 26th for speeding by Officer Cullen. Is that true?"

"Yes…your honor."

"Have you anything to say or add to this session?" The judge asked in a bored tone.

"Yes, your honor. I wasn't speeding. I was doing the exact speed limit. Officer Cullen must have made a mistake." I can't deny the fact that her statement hurt me.

"Is that true? Is Officer Cullen present in this courtroom?" Judge Perry asked, looking around impatiently.

Crap! She is going to ask me. I can't deny it, and then I'll look like a fool, especially since I didn't try to fix it over the weekend. I'll surely be toast if I agree with Isabella.

I stood up, "I am Officer Cullen, your honor." My mind was telling me to lie, while my heart told me to tell the truth. Which one?

"Is Ms. Swan telling the truth? Or was she actually going thirty-five in a thirty?" Judge Perry asked me.

While my mind and heart battled, my pride snuck up and took control, "Yes your honor, Ms. Swan was going thirty-five." Dang it! What's the matter with me? I had done it again. Pride falleth before man…and I would surely fall hard.

"I'm sorry Ms. Swan. You are to pay—"

Isabella interrupted, "No, he's lying!" Her hands were clenched into fists, displaying her anger. Judge Perry didn't miss that.

"Ms. Swan! How dare you interrupt me in my courtroom! Now, because of your outburst, you will pay a _new_ fine of one-hundred dollars."

"What? You can't do that!" Isabella cried, suddenly slapping her hands to her mouth realizing her mistake.

"Bella, hush!" Whispered her father, Chief Swan, who was next to her.

Judge Perry's eyes filled with rage, her temper lost a little while back. "That's it Ms. Swan! You will now pay a fine of one-hundred and fifty dollars, and your license will be _revoked_!" By then, Judge Perry was standing up. She then started briskly walking to her office.

The courtroom was utterly silent. Nobody dared to move. My mouth was hanging completely open. What have I done?

Suddenly, Isabella rose up from her seat, her hand still across her mouth and started walking down the aisle towards the exit, Chief Swan right on her heels. Her head was angled down, so that her hair fell on either side of her face, but not completely covering it. I could tell that her face was blood red, caused by her extreme embarrassment. Right before she opened the door, I could hear her distinct cry, followed by her sobs as she walked down the hall. I truly am a monster, but I _will_ find a way to fix this.

**A/N: There's a saying, "It usually get worse before it gets better." Well, you just read the worst, now it's time to enjoy the better :) **


	5. Righting the Wrong

**A/N: I'm back! And, I have two chapters this time. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Twilight

EPOV

On my way home from the courthouse, I decided I was too far into this mess to think logically. I needed Carlisle!

Once at home, I ran up the stairs and knocked on the door to his study.

A frustrated "yes?" came from inside. So I walked in, hoping I was not disturbing him.

"I was wanting to talk about something…if you're not too busy." I mumbled.

Looking up from his paper, he sighed, seeming to be back with the real world. Now he seemed more at ease. "Edward! What can I help you with? You know I always enjoy our father to son discussions." He said with a genuine fatherly smile.

"Well, it's about work. I have this…problem. You see…I pulled over this woman for speeding whenever she wasn't really…so I could fill my quota," I paused, unsure if he was going to say something. He nodded at me with his head, telling me to continue. "Anyways, she went to court today, and tried to tell the judge the truth, which was that she didn't speed. The judge asked me…and I told her…that she did." I shamefully whispered, looking down. Carlisle was waiting for my eyes to meet his, but I had to finish telling my story. "Then, she argued with the judge, and a few things got out of control…in the end, her seventy-five dollar fine was increased to one-hundred fifty dollars. And her license got revoked, even though it was her first ticket." I was speaking so softly, I wondered if he could still hear me. Finally, I decided to make eye contact with him. "Carlisle, please tell me what to do? I have done everything completely wrong. I can't afford to mess up anymore." Desperation evident in my voice.

Carlisle said nothing, leaving me in an uncomfortable silence. Taking a deep breath he replied, "No, you certainly can't afford to mess up further. But do not beat yourself up over this. I can see that you regret what you have done deeply, and that means it is quite fixable. Edward, you know what to do. It's just a matter of admitting you were wrong and telling the truth." He said, trying to be as comforting as possible.

I needed to take a seat. Sitting down, I made eye contact with him once more. "Carlisle, what if I lose my job?"

"Well, that is certainly a possibility. But, would you rather keep your job, leaving this woman to pay the fine and have her license revoked, or tell the truth, in which you get punished and the woman gets off? You decide Edward. This is as far as I can take you." He said.

Nodding my head, I agreed. "It is the only way to go about this mess. I guess I will tell Chief Swan today."

"I didn't know you worked today." Carlisle asked, confused.

"No, I don't. But I really need to get this off my chest. Plus, not knowing my punishment is going to kill me!" I cried. Carlisle looked pleased that I was finally thinking clearly.

Sensing this was the end of the conversation, I decided to be on my way out. But I still had one more question.

"Carlisle? When I came in, you were overly frustrated. What was aggravating you so?"

"Oh! Well, I was just looking over a few national statistics—hospitalizations, accidents, murders, missing persons—and I noticed that in the last month, Houston, Texas has had a spike in missing persons. Apparently others beside myself have caught the issue, and have gone to the families for interviews. Many of them are quite similar and disturbing," he paused, unsure to go on, "but don't worry about that Edward, that is in the south. I'm probably just looking into the issue far too much." He said with a reassuring smile.

--

Walking into the station felt oddly different today. Everyone else was the same, sending me an occasional, "Hey, Edward," but the overall feel was strange. It felt like _I_ was the criminal, because _I_ had something to confess. I was no better than the few goons I bring in here monthly…or should I say yearly.

I turned the corner, a few feet from the Chief's office when I heard someone calling my name. I turned around, coming face to face with Eric Yorkie. I had gone to Forks High with him for my senior year. He hadn't changed a bit, except the fact that he took being a cop too seriously when it came to the doughnut department. His hair was still oily, black and he still had bad skin problems.

"Hey, Eric. How are you?" I replied, not really caring for his reply. I had bigger things on my mind.

"I'm fine. Why are you in here today?" He asked, shifting his tight belt around his pudgy waist.

"I'm here to talk to the Chief. Is he in?" I asked looking towards his office.

"Yeah. Are you here to talk to him about the ticket you gave his daughter?" His boldness caught my complete attention. Did he know anything?

"Maybe. Why?" I asked, trying to appear nonchalant.

"Well, I was just thinking about his dilemma. He has to decide to believe you or his daughter. Personally, I don't think the decision is in your favor." He said, seeming a little overly smug. Ever since Chief Swan evidently chose me as his favorite rookie, Eric's done nothing but brown-nose.

Narrowing my eyes, I replied, "Well, we'll just have to see about that, won't we?" Hopefully I sounded slightly menacing. May as well have a little fun in my last few moments of employment here.

Eric looked taken aback, eyes wide. "Ummm…good luck, Edward." And with that, he scurried off like the little weasel he is.

Annoyed, I turned around, finishing my journey to the Chief's office. Once there, all emotion except fear and anxiety had left my system, even the annoyance Eric had put on me.

I knocked on the door, halfway hoping he wouldn't be there. But then the door opened, revealing an normal Chief Swan.

"Hello, Edward. What are you doing in today?" Clearly he didn't suspect me of lying on his daughter. Didn't he believe her? Maybe she was truly a bad and unruly child and he didn't believe her? He invited me in, closing the door behind me. He then walked around his desk and took a seat.

"Well, I was wondering if I could talk to you Chief…about this morning." I said, averting my gaze to his hunting pictures situated upon his desk.

"Ok…what about this morning, Edward?" He asked, seeming to know what I was going to say. Maybe he did believe his daughter?

Not knowing how to spill the truth as "sweetly" as possible, I just decided to say it right out, no decorations. "Your daughter was telling the truth. She wasn't speeding. The only reason I pulled her over was because I hadn't written a ticket all day, and I really didn't want you to get mad at me and accuse me off sitting around doing nothing. There really is _nobody_ to write a ticket for out there. I thought I was going to lose my job. But now, I guess there's no other thing for me to expect." I said at the speed of light. Maybe I spoke so fast that his brain didn't have time to process the information.

He nodded his head, dashing my hopes. "I know, Edward." He said calmly.

"_What_? Why didn't you confront me? I did this awful injustice against your daughter, and you _didn't_ hit me square in the face?" I said, incredulously.

"Edward, I figured that was the reason you pulled her over. I have been too hard on you in that respect. But that doesn't excuse your actions. When Bella told me she wasn't speeding, I believed her, but I didn't argue because I was hoping you would realize your mistake and confess. If you hadn't confessed in a week, I _was_ going to confront you. You might have gotten your punch to the face then. But I wanted to give you the chance to fix this yourself. Things went a little haywire when Bella started to argue with Judge Perry, but now that you have told the truth, we'll have to make sure she gets her license back." Chief Swan said with great confidence. He certainly noticed a great deal.

"Chief? Has Isabella already paid the fine?" I asked, hoping she hadn't.

"Yes, we had to do that before we left the courthouse this morning." He said, staring directly into my eyes.

"Well, Chief, if you don't mind, I would like to personally apologize to your daughter if that would be alright? I would also like to pay her back the fine. I want you to know, I feel nothing but regret. I am willing to accept any punishment you wish to put upon me, or I will not argue if you wish for me to leave your services." I said, feeling lighter than before.

Chief Swan seemed to be thinking about my confession, so I turned my face away from his. My eyes wandered over his office. It was considerably homey, considering he was a man. Finally my eyes landed on a photo on top of a filing cabinet. It was of the Chief and his daughter, who appeared to be around the age of ten, and an Indian man in a wheelchair with an Indian boy, who appeared to be eight years old. They were on the shore of a lake.

"Edward, I don't want you off the force. But I will have to put you on probation for two weeks with no pay." That was it? "And I do give you permission to apologize to Bella in person. I would advise doing so tomorrow. Today may not be the best day to approach her. If you did, you _might_ still get that punch to the face you were expecting." He said with a tight smile.

"Of course, sir! What about her license?"

"I'll have to fill out some papers and you will have to sign some of them to make it official. The whole process may take three days to reverse, _if_ Judge Perry wants to be nice. She may still be fuming over Bella's outburst. If she is feeling vengeful, the process may take up to a week, but hopefully she will sign for it immediately." Chief Swan said.

"Alright, what time should I drop by tomorrow?"

"Around noon." He replied, clearly wanting to get started on filling out the forms.

"Of course, sir. Noon tomorrow. Bye" I said, as I got up and left his office. I felt a slight new bounce in my step. So far things were going well. But now I felt the worse has yet to come.

**A/N: Yay! He has her father's blessing :) **


	6. Striking a Deal

**A/N: Yes, yes, yes...on with the story!**

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing!

EPOV

All day yesterday, I composed my apology to Isabella. Even in the car on my way to the Chief's house today, I was continually rehearsing and perfecting. In the few days I have been around Isabella, I got the feeling that she deserved nothing less than perfect, especially from me.

As I pulled onto her street, butterflies starting fluttering in my stomach. Weird. The closer I got to her house, the large their wings. Soon, I felt my jaws start to lock up. Hopefully, I can get this apology-of-a-lifetime out of the way without throwing up.

Finally, I pulled up into her driveway behind the beastly red truck. Before the sickness progressed, I grabbed the flowers and stepped out of the car. I had gotten her freesias. They were the closest flowers that could capture her heavenly scent. Slowly, I made my way up her driveway to the front door.

BPOV

Monday was definitely the _worst_ day of my life! I have never felt so much humiliation in one sitting before. Of course, not all of it was _his_ fault. I was the one that made the situation ten times worse by stepping out of line and disrespecting Judge Perry. Now, I can't drive for six months!

I had been dwelling on the incident too much today. I needed something to clear my mind. I decided to sit on the couch, snuggling up in a blanket while reading Wuthering Heights for the hundredth time.

The most I could accomplish was three pages before my thoughts drifted back to my predicament. Yesterday, Charlie came home happier. I continually asked him about it, but he wouldn't budge. He was being completely stubborn! I would have to find out what was making his steps lighter before I go crazy with curiosity.

The doorbell rang, tearing me away from my thoughts and my poor attempt at reading. I got up confused as to whom it could be. Charlie was at work…and Renee was in Jacksonville. That about covered who would want to see me.

I opened the door, instantly regretting my decision. It was _him_, standing before me in all his glory. His beautiful eyes looked sad. I wondered why. And he had flowers! This couldn't be good.

He stared into my eyes, seeming to work up his courage. "Isabella? I want to apologize to you for what I have done." I was completely shocked, especially when butterflies appeared as soon as my name came from his mouth. Nothing sounded so beautiful. Stop it! You're mad at him!

"What exactly are you apologizing for, Officer Cullen?" I asked, forcing annoyance into my voice.

"Please, call me Edward. I am apologizing for writing you a false ticket." He said looking shamefully towards the ground.

Oh! So he is confessing. "I knew it! Now I'm in trouble because of you. Why did you write me the ticket?" I asked, more curious than angry.

Sighing, he replied, "In my line of work, we have quotas to fill. They are very hard to complete in this town, because so few people actually do anything wrong. Lately, Chief Swan, your father, has been getting onto me because I haven't turned in any. Friday was also a bad day, and I was about to get off duty when I saw you turn the corner. I thought I would have lost my job if I didn't have any proof I was working. So, in an act of stupidity, I pulled you over and have regretted it ever since." He said very quickly. By looking into his eyes, I could tell his regret was genuine.

"Oh…ok. What are you going to tell Charlie?" For some reason I was drawn to his mere presence and wanted to talk to him at any chance I got.

"I already talked to him. Yesterday actually. He seemed to take it considerably well. I was expecting to get fired, but instead he put me on probation for two weeks with no pay. He told me he already knew and was just waiting for me to confess on my own." So that was why Charlie was happy…

"Isabella—"

"Please…call me Bella." I said.

For a moment his eyes widen with a look of disbelief, then relief washed over his face, revealing a devilish smile. My knees started to tremble. His smile is amazing…

"_Bella_," it rolled deliciously off his tongue, "I want you to know that everything is being done right now to get your license back as soon as possible. Chief Swan said if Judge Perry is lenient, the process might take three days. If she decides to be difficult, it could take up to a week." He said, the apprehension returning to his eyes.

"Oh, ok." Finally I realized he was still standing on the porch with flowers in his hand. "Oh, I'm sorry, come in." I quickly apologized.

He laughed a musical chuckle before stepping inside, taking off his coat.

"Ummm…" I didn't know what to do with him in my house. "Why don't we take a seat in the living room?" I said leading him down the hallway.

"Actually, do you have anything to put these flowers in?" He asked, looking towards the kitchen.

"Oh yeah, follow me." I then proceeded to lead him through the kitchen to the sink. I noticed his eyes widen with delight at the bright yellow cabinets. Renee, Renee…

I grabbed a vase, filled it with water and took the flowers from his outstretched hand. I took a quick sniff and realized by look and smell, that they were freesias.

"They are very beautiful." I said straightening the flowers in the vase.

"Yes, I do agree." Edward replied, staring intently at me. Was there a double meaning to his words? My heart fluttered at the possibility.

"Now, we can head to the living room."

"Lead the way, Bella." I really loved the way my name sounded on his lips.

Once in the living room, I took a seat on the couch. Edward sat on the other end, his intense eyes still glued to my face. I couldn't help but stare back.

I broke the silence, "So, since I don't have my license for a few days, I think I will let you help me decide how I will travel now, since you helped put me there." I said hoping to keep my tone light and not accusing.

He didn't seem hurt. "Well, there's always the bus." He said with a beautiful smile. I would ride the bus everyday just to see that smile.

Suddenly, an idea occurred to me. "Edward? Since you're…_off_ for two weeks, maybe you could find it in your heart to play chauffer? It would be a nice pay off for the trouble last Monday." I said smiling, trying to hide my excitement at the idea of merely being around him for any amount of time.

That seemed to peek his interest also. He smiled a gorgeous, crooked grin before replying, "I think that is a spectacular idea, _Bella_. And before I forget…" He trailed off while reaching in his back pocket pulling out his wallet. He opened it up and pulled out some money, handing it to me. "Here is two-hundred. I want to give you some extra for all the trouble I caused."

My forehead creased. Perhaps I was reading too much into this. All he wanted to do was repay me and get the guilty feeling off his chest. How could he possibly be interested in me? "Oh," I replied taking the money. I counted it, taking fifty out and handing it back to him. "I don't want your extra money." I said, barely hiding the fact that I had been offended.

He was clueless. "Why don't you want the extra?"

"Because, that would make us even. I don't want to be even, not just yet. When I get my license back, then we'll be even and you can go on your merry way." I wasn't going to let him get off. All my initial anger was returning.

"Bella? If I said something to offend you, I am sorry. I just feel awful for the injustice I have put upon you. And I know I don't deserve to feel relieved, but you have no idea how relieved I feel now that you are going to let me drive you around. I am honored you are choosing to let me make this up to you." He said, trying to convince me.

Ok, so maybe he wasn't just trying to get even. "Ok…so, where should we go first?" I replied, not caring that I wore the goofiest grin around Forks.

"Anywhere you ask, my lady." Edward responded in a cute accent.

Mmm…_my lady_…I could get used to that!

**A/N: Well, I really hope you liked it. Next is definite fluff :) Review!**


	7. Mr Chauffer

**A/N: Fluff n' stuff! And thanks guys for the supportive reviews :)**

**Disclaimer: **Twilight is not owned by me.

BPOV

Edward Cullen is here in my living room, only a few feet from me on _my_ couch, trying to decide on a decent place to go. I could hardly believe my luck. Sure, we definitely started off on the wrong foot, but we could at least be friends…right?

"So, I was thinking maybe a movie. Or we could go have lunch at this little restaurant I stumbled upon up in Port Angeles. You pick. It's your decision." He suggested.

They both sound like something you would do on a first date. I didn't know what to do until my stomach made up my mind for me. Edward lowered his gaze from my eyes to my stomach, trying to hold in his laugh.

"Well, I guess you've made a decision." His lips wore the adorable crooked grin I had learned to love in all of ten minutes.

"Ok, let me get my stuff." I said as I made my way upstairs.

Getting up to leave, he said, "Alright, I'll be out in the car."

That simple statement triggered a horrifying possibility. "Wait!"

He turned to look at my surprised face. "What? Is something the matter?" He asked with worry etched across his face.

"You're not driving the police cruiser are you? Because if you are, I'll just take the fifty dollars and call it even." I said quite seriously.

Edwards response was to double over laughing. I could feel my blush start to creep up my neck.

"Bella…" He coughed out between laughs, "I…have another…car…"

Well, at least that was a relief. "Oh, ok…" I was embarrassed that I even thought of that question. Of course he had another car. He was on probation.

Finally his laughing ceased. He looked up at me with humor in his eyes, which grew more serious by the second.

"Bella, I'm sorry I laughed at your question. I was just having an awful time imagining myself chauffeuring you around in a police cruiser. The back seat probably wouldn't be the most comfortable place to sit." He said with a tight smile across his lips.

_Hmmm…maybe we'll check that theory out in the future…_Oh Bella! You're reading too much into this.

"It's ok. I'm going to finish getting ready now. I'll be out in a minute." Now, I was mainly curious as to what kind of car Edward Cullen did drive. I hadn't bothered to look when I opened the door. I had my eyes on other things…

Up in my room, I grabbed my coat and my purse and made my way back down the stairs and out the front door. There in the driveway, behind my truck, was a silver, shiny Volvo. Nice!

I slowly made my way down the driveway, my eyes raking over the stylish car. Then, I searched for Edward, only to find him proudly leaning against the passenger side of the car.

"One more question. Would you prefer the front seat, or the back seat?" He asked in his accent.

_Back seat with you…_"Front. It would get lonely in the back, don't you think?"

His face seemed to brighten considerably as he opened up the passenger door, allowing me to slide past him, my back grazing against his chest. I took my seat in the warm car, while he closed the door and ran around to the other side.

Once inside he asked, "So, do you want to give me a nickname? Reeves, Albert, Connor…anything but Jives." He pleaded with puppy dog eyes.

"I don't know…Jives sounds pretty interesting. Why don't you like it?" I asked seriously.

"It sounds too much like chives, and personally, I don't want to get confused with a spice." He also replied seriously.

"Alright, how about I call you…Edward! I like that name the best. Plus, there will be no confusion at all." I said laughing.

"Thank you, my lady." There goes that accent and the '_my lady'_ again.

At this point, I finally took notice that we had left my driveway. I looked over at Edward, he was staring at the speedometer uncomfortably. Then, feeling my gaze on him, he turned and looked me in the eyes.

"Edward, are you ok? Is thirty miles too fast for you?" I asked jokingly.

His face was quite serious, "No, it's not fast enough." I was confused.

"Ok…" I asked, hoping he would explain.

He finally did after a few moments, "Before I became a cop, I loved to drive."

"And you don't now?"

"Well, as a cop, I feel restricted by the speed limits. I know this will sound weird, but the speed I am most comfortable at is at least seventy." He stated, looking over at my face, trying to gauge my reaction.

"So, you like to speed." _That little hypocrite_ I thought with a smile.

"Well, yes…but I can't anymore. I have to set an example for the citizens of Forks." He said.

"Well, at least you know you are safe at thirty, as opposed to seventy." I said, trying to cheer him up. "I bet you like the interstates."

He looked over at me again, with a devilish grin. Uh oh…The next thing I knew, we were on the interstate headed to Port Angeles. I glanced at the speedometer. Seventy-five miles per hour! I looked over at Edward, and he seemed more at ease. Well, at least someone's comfortable.

On the way, we didn't talk much more. But Edward did stick in a CD that I recognized right off the bat. Claire de Lune, at least we had that in common.

We made it to Port Angeles in record time, due to Edward's speed demon antics. Thankfully he slowed down to the speed limits, while searching for the restaurant he told me about. Finally, he found it and pulled into the parking lot.

Before I had a chance to take my much-needed seatbelt off, Edward raced around the front of the car, opening my door for me. Stunned, I looked up at him, allowing a smile to slowly creep onto my face. His hand was extended, willing me to take it. I did.

He pulled me swiftly from my seat. The suddenness mixed with my clumsiness made me stumble into his chest.

--

EPOV

My breathing instantly sped up when she fell softly against my chest. I hadn't meant to pull her too quickly. But I really can't complain. I searched her face for any signs of anger. I searched her deep, chocolate eyes, her blushing cheeks, and her _plump_, pink lips. My own lips burned at the thought of coming in contact with hers. She was so close I could smell her strawberry shampoo. This girl really likes strawberry…

Her eyes broke contact with mine, as she softly pushed against me, trying to regain her own balance. Once accomplished, she looked me in the eyes and blushed an even darker shade of red than before. There was no doubt about it; I was falling for this girl.

--

BPOV

The embarrassment practically rolled off of me. He probably thought I was an idiot, a clumsy idiot. I angled my head towards the ground, allowing my hair to become a barrier between myself and the perfect being to my right. Sensing my embarrassment, he placed his hand under my chin, lifting it up to where our eyes once again made contact.

"Don't be embarrassed. I was glad I could be there to catch you." He whispered, leaning in closer.

"I'm sorry. I tend to fall quite frequently…so this may not be the last time you have to catch me." I whispered back.

He laughed. I could feel his warm breath against my frozen cheek, causing my knees to tremble. Only a small amount of space separated us now.

"I'll just have to keep a closer eye on you then." He said. But his sultry eyes seemed to be saying something else. A shiver ran through my body. His smile tightened as he wrapped his arms around my waist, closing the gap between us.

"Are you cold?" He asked.

"No. Are you?" I didn't really want to tell him the truth, which was that I was actually on fire.

"Not anymore." My breath hitched in my throat as I felt the blood rush to my cheeks. He just smiled and released my body from his hold. I instantly looked away, trying to hide my disappointment.

But fortunately, he grabbed my hand and started walking to the restaurant. Ironically, the name of the place was La Bella Italia.

Inside, the restaurant was quite romantic…for those here on dates that is. The room was dim, the main source of lights came from candles all along the walls above cozy booths and tables.

I was too busy to notice anyone, until I heard a soft voice. I glanced around, finding the source to be Angela Webber, a girl with whom I graduated. She looked quite the same, except for her new stylish haircut that seemed to age her two or three years. Overall, she looked very beautiful and sophisticated.

"Bella! How have you been the last month since we graduated?" She asked, genuinely curious.

"I've been fine, Angela. How have you been? Are you and Ben still together?" I asked, hoping they still were.

"Oh, I have been great! And yes, I am still with Ben. He actually asked me to marry him." She replied, her tone gaining excitement at the end.

"He did! What did you say?" Wow, they must really love each other.

"Yes!" She said with a squeal. She then looked over at Edward, and back to me with a questionable look. Her lips soon turned into a smile when she realized Edward was still holding my hand. I blushed when she noticed.

"Well, it appears you two already know each other." Edward said while beaming down at me. I couldn't help but return the smile. It was quite impossible for me to frown. At least, that's what I thought before I heard a nasally voice calling my name from across the room. I chanced a look to the left and saw Lauren Mallory jogging over to Edward, Angela, and I was a surprised look upon her face. Great, she worked here too!

"Bella! How have you been?" She asked, the whole time her eyes were plastered on Edward's face. I couldn't blame her, but I still got jealous. So I just tightened my grip on his hand, hoping she would notice.

"I've been just fine." I said right before she noticed my hand was interlocked with Edward's.

"Oh, that's great." She replied with fake enthusiasm. "Well, I guess I could be your server today. Thanks Angela, I'll take them from here." She said while eying Edward the whole time.

Angela sent me a look of sympathy. I smiled back telling her it would hopefully be alright and that I wouldn't have to punch someone today.

We followed Lauren to a table I the middle of the room. Before she had a chance to sit our silverware and menus down, Edward asked, "Would it be ok if we sat over there?" He was pointing to a secluded section of the restaurant.

Lauren's face fell a fraction before replying, "Sure."

She led us over to a booth against the far wall, placing our menus on opposite sides of the table.

"Do you already know what you would like to drink?" She asked still blatantly staring at Edward. But he was staring at me, waiting for my response.

"Coke." I replied, earning a disappointed look from Lauren.

"Same thing." Edward replied, not giving our waitress the time of day. Maybe it was the candle stationed right next to me that I felt the heat coming off of. Or, just maybe it was the anger rolling off of Lauren. Guess I'll never know…

"I'll be back." And with that, she walked off.

"Whew! I'm glad she left. I could feel her start boring a hole in the side of my head. Her stare was that intense!" Edward cried with an exasperated expression on his face.

"Yeah, I got enough of her in High School." I mumbled.

"So, you went to Forks High? How many years?" He asked.

"Just for my senior year, which I finished a few weeks ago. Did you go to Forks High?" I asked while fiddling with my napkin.

"Yes, for _my_ senior year, which _I_ finished a year ago. Where did you go to school before?" He seemed genuinely interested in my answer, which surprised me.

"I lived in Arizona with my mom and stepfather. I moved here last summer." I answered truthfully.

"Here you guys go." Lauren called as she sat our drinks down on the table, still trying unsuccessfully to gain a look from Edward.

"Thanks." Both Edward and I replied.

"Do you guys know what you want yet?" She asked in a frustrated tone.

Edward was still looking at me, waiting for my decision. I realized I hadn't looked at the menu—who could blame me, I have better things to look at—so I quickly decided on something Italian.

"Spaghetti."

"I'll have the lasagna." Replied Edward, finally looking at Lauren while handing her the menus.

With newly regained confidence, Lauren's smile grew. "Great, I'll have that out to you all in just a few minutes."

I watched as she sauntered down the aisle, swaying her hips slightly. I turned back around, noticing Edward was staring at me.

"Anymore questions Sherlock?" I asked jokingly.

"So you did think of a nickname for me." He gave me an appalled look. "I thought Edward was just fine." He said with a slight pout. _Sexy…_

"Oh, you know what I mean." I replied, dismissing his statements with a wave of my hand.

He chuckled. "So, I do have a few more." He then proceeded to ask me a multitude of questions as to why I moved, how I liked it, my plans for college, and other randomly assorted goodies. He only stopped once, and that was so Lauren could buzz off after delivering our food.

A spaghetti, a lasagna, two refills of coke, and a shared hot fudge brownie later, we decided it was time to leave. Getting up, I felt like I could barely move. Edward seemed to notice because he rushed over and grabbed my hand, once again pulling me up from my seat. This time he was extremely gentle and slow with his movements. A small part of me was disappointed, hoping to "fall" against him once more.

We paid our bill and left after saying goodbye to Angela. On our way out to the car, it occurred to me that our whole afternoon was focused on me. I would have to fix that.

"So, I was thinking…next time I decide I need a chauffer, I think it should be my turn to ask all the questions. You know, I need to keep track of all my employees. Make sure their credentials are in check…" I said with a smile.

"Oh, really? And when do you think you will need a chauffer again?" He asked expectantly.

I wasn't sure how to reply. I didn't want to take up all his time. He probably had some very important things to do. "Ummm…when are you free?"

"Anytime you want me to be." He whispered. Now we were at his car. Slowly he moved towards me, pushing me gently against the passenger door. My breathing quickly grew erratic. No space was separating us now. _I hope he can't feel the wild flutter of my heartbeat…_

"Oh…well…how about tomorrow?" My question came out breathy and staggered. How many more ways could I embarrass myself today?

"Mmm…sounds good to me. And remember, you can also call me later if you need to go anywhere else today. I am _completely yours_ for the rest of the week…" He replied in a sultry voice. _I hope I don't pass out!!_

I nodded my head in response. He slowly backed up and opened the car door for me. I sank down into the seat in a complete stupor. How could he have that kind of effect on me? This was definitely going to be a very interesting week.

**A/N: I made a few things similar to the (?) chapter of 'Twilight', but not everything. I am not sure I will post for the next few days. I have a small hunch that nobody will be on here at all over the weekend :) I know I won't be. I hope everyone is excited as I am! Have fun with Breaking Dawn x)**


	8. Cookies

**A/N: Long time no see! Well, I _have_ had a lot to do. First there was Breaking Dawn, which was good. Then work was killer. School is the death of me. Senior year is supposed to be the best, but for me it's going to be the hardest :( And band also takes up quite a bit of my time. Yes, I'm a band geek :) Here is the belated goods. I hope you like it.**

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Twilight or any of the shocking plot twists in Breaking Dawn :0

EPOV

_Bella…_the whole drive home I couldn't get her out of my mind. Her sensual image continually passed through my thoughts. I'm surprised I made it home safely and hadn't been in an accident. I pulled into the garage and turned off the ignition, sighing. Three, two, one…

"Edward!"

Alice. She always had a knack for knowing things, like _when_ I get home.

Getting out of the car, I decided to go inside and meet my fate. Hopefully the pixie would be merciful.

A sharp squeal came from the kitchen. "Edward. I'm in here."

I slowly made my way to the kitchen. Once there, I noticed there was a plate with a _delicious_ looking pile of chocolate chip cookies and an overly excited Alice next to it in an apron. And the interrogation begins.

Peacefully accepting defeat, I walked over, took a cookie, and sat down. "Ok Alice. What do you want?" I took a bite. Perfect.

"Well…I know you went to apologize to Bella." She said, trying to nudge me for information.

Bella? "Why did you call her Bella and not Isabella? Do you know her?" I asked. I just found out about her preference to be called Bella today.

"I just figured she would like that better." She really is good at guessing things.

"Oh." Strange...

"Well…why were you over there for so long? What happened?" Her tiny smile grew.

"She accepted my apology, we made a deal, and…I took her out to dinner." I whispered the last part, right before taking a big bite out of my cookie.

Squeal. Scream. Clapping. Squeal. "Oh my gosh! ROSALIE!"

"Alice! Why are you calling Rosalie? This isn't that big of a deal." I said immediately, I did not want Rosalie in the middle of this.

I momentarily thought of making a quick escape to my room, a room with a lockable door…but not Emmett proof. Dang!

"Edward, don't you even think about making a run for your room." Alice said with an evil glare.

Double dang!

"What Alice? You interrupted my pedicure." Rosalie said in an annoyed voiced. I looked down, and sure enough, seven out of ten were painted a deep red. How did Rosalie convince a professional to come to our house? Right then, I saw Emmett jog into the kitchen with red nail polish splattered on his hands.

"Rose! Come on, I need to finish. I'm gotta beat the snot out of Jasper on Halo." He pleaded.

"You wish. The day you beat me will be the day you come out of the closet." Jasper said walking into the kitchen, catching sight of Emmett's hands.

Great! Everyone's here.

"Whatever Jasper! Just because you want me…" Emmett teased while shaking his hips towards Jasper.

"Guys! Edward has something to tell us. Go on Edward." Alice said, nodding her head ferociously.

I grabbed another cookie and made my way to the fridge to get some milk. "There's nothing to tell."

"Fine! I'll tell it." Alice threatened. I shrugged, she was going to add whatever I left out.

"Edward went over to Bella's to apologize and he was over there a _long_ time." She said, stressing the word long. "Apparently, they made some kind of deal and…he took her to _dinner_." She said with a proud smile.

"Eddie's finally taken notice of the opposite sex. Good to finally have you off my back." Emmett said with a nasty smile.

"Go paint your nails _Emmy_!" I snarled.

"Hey, only Rose can call me that!" He said, quickly covering his mouth.

I just about choked on my cookie. Jasper and I shared a small laugh before Alice continued her questioning.

"Where did you two go? What did you talk about? What was the deal about? Did she scream at you?" She fired off one after another.

I contemplated grabbing another cookie, but decided I was done being buttered up.

Quick answers Edward. "We went to a restaurant in Port Angeles. We talked about high school and why she came here, stuff like that." I sighed. Alice cleared her thoat, signaling me to continue. "Since she can't drive for a while, we made a deal that I would be her chauffer for a week." That earned a squeal. "And no, she didn't scream at me." I said, hoping this was over.

Rosalie looked bored. Emmett was smiling. I could practically see the gears in his head turning trying to think of a good joke. Alice was jumping up and down, clapping her hands. Jasper was staring at Alice with dancing eyes, almost like he could feel her excitement.

"Well, I'm going to my room now. See ya." I said, quickly snatching another cookie.

"Wait!" Dang pixie.

"What Alice?" I replied turning around in the doorway.

"Are you going to see her tomorrow?"

I hope. "I don't know. Why?" I replied.

"Well…I think you should bring her over here. I would love to meet her." Her eyes lit up considerably at the thought. She probably just wanted a shopping partner…or slave, however you wanted to look at it. "Please Edward! We'll all be good. I promise!" She pleaded with the full effect.

It wasn't a bad idea. I think she would like Alice and Jasper. Maybe Emmett; she seems to have a good sense of humor. I don't think she would like Rosalie that much. And I'm sure Carlisle and Esme would love her.

"Maybe." I said, reluctant to agree. "It's whatever she wants."

"Awww…that's sweet." Alice cooed. Then she turned serious, "But I mean it. Think about it." She pleaded some more.

"Fine! I'll ask her." I left the kitchen before Alice could say anymore.

BPOV

Yesterday was undoubtedly one of the _best_ days of my life. Charlie even saw the difference in me. When he asked me what it was about, I told him I was happy to be let off the hook. I just didn't tell him I was _extremely_ _happy_ because I got to hang out with Edward Cullen.

But now I have a dilemma. I really want to see Edward, but I have nowhere to go. Surely he'll be able to tell that I'm just desperate to see him.

Oh well…maybe I can give him a day off. This was going to be a slow day.

The phone rang. I got up and picked up the reciever.

"Hello." I said to the person on the other line.

"Hey Bella. It's me, Edward." He said in an unforgettable, sexy voice.

"Hey!" I managed to squeak out.

"I was wondering if you needed my services today?"

Oh no! I still hadn't made up my mind. "Ummm…I hadn't really thought of anywhere that I needed to go…"

"Oh." His voice was quieter. "Well, I was wondering if you would just like to hang out then, since you have nowhere to go."  
"Sure!" I replied a little _too_ quickly. "Ummm…where?"

"How about I pick you up and we go back to my place." All the blood drained from my face. Then it all _rushed_ to my face. In Edward's house!

"Bella? Are you still there?" He asked.

"Yeah…that sounds fine." I whispered.

"Great! I'll be there in ten minutes. See ya!"

Deep breaths Bella. It's just a house…that happens to be where he _lives_, along with his parents and…his brothers and sisters! Oh no! What if they don't like me? Quickly I ran up to my room, only tripping twice on the stairs, and raided my closet for something suitable to wear. Should I wear something dressy, casual, or comfortable? I decided to go with the second.

Finally dressed, I gazed at my reflection in the mirror. I wore a cap sleeve silk poplin with a red ribbon that tied under the breast over a white tank top. I put on a pair of snug dark bootcut jeans and a pair jazor black rocket dogs. To accent the shirt, I put on my apple necklace. It was a graduation present from Charlie. I thought I would look good against the black and match with the ribbon. My hair was in soft curls that reached the middle of my back.

Then there was a knock on the door. Perfect timing. I grabbed my black clutch and slowly descended the stairs so that I wouldn't trip.

I reached the door and opened it. I was of course stunned by Edward's beauty. Would I ever get used to it? His eyes quickly took in my outfit, a smile creeping onto his lips.

"You look beautiful. I think Alice will like you." He said with a dazzling smile. He handed me a flower. It was white with red tips. "It a ruffled tulip." I was momentarily lost in his perfection, when I remembered my question.

"Who's Alice?" I asked with great confusion.

"She's my sister. I think you'll like her." He sounded sure, so I trusted him.

He held out his arm for me to take and led me to his car. He opened the passenger door for me once again and ran around to the other side. He got in and we started on our way. This time I asked all the questions.

"So, what are your parents like?" I asked.

"Well, they are very supportive, loving, and compassionate. Their names are Carlisle and Esme. I've lived with them since I was ten." He said.

"Were you adopted?" I asked.

"No, but my siblings were."

"Really?" Carlisle and Esme _must_ be loving people to adopt four children. But I was still confused about Edward.

"My real parents were Edward and Elizabeth Masen. They were also extremely loving parents. Esme was my mother's sister, so technically I live with my aunt and uncle." He explained.

"Oh…" I was still a little confused. Edward seemed to sense that.

"My parents died when I was ten. They had taken a trip to the Sudan. While there, they both contracted the deadly malaria."

"Edward, you don't have to talk about this." I said, not wanting him to be sad.

"I know, but I feel like I _can_ talk to you about it." He said reassuringly.

"So, you then moved in with Carlisle and Esme and took their last name." I said, slightly changing the subject.

"Yes, and in light of recent events, they were still pleased to have me with them. They had always wanted children, and planned on adopting, which they did one year later. I was eleven when they adopted Rosalie. She was twelve. As for the name, I wanted to have a fresh start. So I changed my last name to Cullen."

"Interesting. So Rosalie was your first sister. Are you two close?" I asked.

"No, not very. She is vain to say the least. Her parents also died, but in a car accident. She still blames the chauffer." He said looking over at me. "I promise, I'm a safe driver." He smiled.

"Then, a year later they adopted Emmett. He was thirteen, as was Rosalie. I genuinely liked Emmett, but he and Rosalie got closer to each other, and they eventually fell in love." He said looking over at my reaction.

"I'm not shocked. There not related, so it's ok." I said, assuring him I wasn't disgusted.

He laughed. "Yeah, they are getting married this fall. Good thing Rosalie kept her old last name of Hale. It would have been weird for Cullens to marry each other."

I had to laugh at that.

"Then, _another_ year later—are you seeing a pattern—they adopted Alice _and_ Jasper. Alice was my age, thirteen, and Jasper was fourteen."

"At the same time?" I asked. What was it? Buy one, get one free.

"Yep! At the orphanage, Alice and Jasper already had a close connection and couldn't bear to be separated. Eventually, their strong friendship evolved into love also." He looked at me once again.

"You have a _very _loving family." I said while smiling.

He chuckled. "Yes I do!"

That then brought a thought to mind. A family of seven, three couples, and one single. That must be awful!

He seemed to know what I was thinking, "It's not so bad being the only one without somebody. Sure, Emmett teases me constantly, but I don't think Carlisle and Esme are going to adopt any more kids anytime soon. Especially any eighteen year olds." He laughed at his joke.

_I'm eighteen…_I joined in his laughter. His family seemed very interesting. Maybe I'll like them. I certainly hope they like me.

**A/N: So did you notice a few things? The apple necklace (twilight), the ruffled tulip (new moon), and the red ribbon (eclipse). I would have put breaking dawn in there, but where could I have incorporated chess? Maybe later. So, Bella's outfit should be up on my site. Check it out. I honestly have the shirt. I wore it to school Friday and I love it :) That's why I made her wear it (besides the fact that it reminds me of eclipse).**


	9. Progressions

**A/N: So, this week has been weird. This past Thursday(8-21-08), my school had a shooting. I know, scary right?Anyways, here is the new material.**

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Twilight...forever and always :(

BPOV

We turned onto a twisting side road. Slowly, the forest on either side of us thinned out into a small meadow. Six cedars lead the way to the walls of a beautiful three-story house. It was a faded white color with a wrap around porch. There were no cars in the driveway. Surely seven people had at least three cars minimum. Maybe they were in the back.

We came to a stop a few feet from a wooden contraption. Before I had time to ask about it, Edward told me not to worry about it or any other weird thing around the house. Emmett and Jasper were the creatively competitive types he told me. I figured I would just ask Emmett.

I stepped out of the car, meeting Edward at the front. My nerves really started to kick in. I started to bite my bottom lip. Holy crow! I'm meeting his family.

Edward pulled my body around to face his. He cupped my face with his hand, placing his thumb on my lower lip, pulling it down and away from my teeth.

"Don't be nervous. They are going to love you." His green eyes were reassuring. "Especially Alice. I may never see you again if she gets a hold of you." He mused, dropping his hand from my face and placing it around my waist. We started to walk towards the porch when the front door swung open. Standing in the doorway was a short, pixie-like girl. Her black hair was short and choppy, yet stylish. She had a smile on her face that practically went ear to ear.

"Bella!" She ran down the steps and into my arms, giving me a _very_ strong hug.

"Alice! Let her breath!" Edward scolded. When she released me, he gave me an 'I told you so' look.

"Its ok." I said reassuringly to Alice.

"Great! I'm glad I finally get to meet you. I've heard so much about you."

I glance at Edward, who conveniently happened to be staring at the wooden contraption. "Oh really! What have you heard? Nothing bad I hope." I couldn't stop the smile from appearing on my face. He had mentioned me.

"Just the basics. I know what started the whole thing." She said pointedly towards Edward, who shifted his gaze to the forest. Alice smirked. "I also know about the deal you two set up. And it was also my idea to have you over today."

"Really? Do you think I should have forced more out of him, deal-wise that is?" I jokingly asked.

Alice grew serious. "Well, I was looking for a new shopping partner. Maybe you would be interested?" She asked me. "Of course, Edward would drive us _and_ help carry our bags." She hinted.

Another excuse to be around Edward. Sounds good to me. I turned my attention towards Edward. "You wouldn't mind, would you?" I asked, giving my best puppy dog impression.

His eyes narrowed, looking at me before answering. "I wouldn't mind at all."

"Great!" Alice squealed before running inside. Wow, she left fast.

Before I had time to fully register her departure, Edward leaned down to my ear. "You know, I _thought_ I was immune to puppy dog eyes. I'm going to have to watch out for you." A chill went through my spine. I would have to use that technique more often.

"Are you guys coming in?" Alice yelled from the doorway.

Edward chuckled, then led the way to up the porch steps and through the front door.

Once inside, I noticed the grandeur of the house. The living area was an immense wide-open area. To the left was a rather large curving staircase with regal pictures of the family members along the ascending wall. The interior was so elegant, it reminded me of a museum. The tone of the room was light, everything in different shades of white. It was also insanely bright, light coming in from the windows and the southern wall, which happened to be completely glass. Then, I noticed a raised platform with a grand piano on it. Next to the piano was a handsome blonde man, who looked to be around his mid-twenties. I recognized him as Doctor Cullen. I remember him from a few of my hospital visits. I don't know how I didn't make the connection earlier. His smile was friendly and welcoming. To his right was a lovely, caramel-haired beauty. Her smile was also welcoming, but at the same time, motherly. I took her to be Esme, Edward's aunt.

"Welcome Bella!" Carlisle warmly greeted. He stepped forward to shake my hand. His soft blue eyes gave me confidence.

I smiled my best smile back. I wanted his kindness. "Hello, Carlisle. I've heard so many wonderful things about Esme and yourself."

Esme stepped forward and gave me an awkward hug, considering Edward still had his arm around my waist. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you, dear Bella. I'm just sorry it had to be in light of unpleasant events. Hopefully I will see you around here more often than not. My home is always welcome to you." She said in a motherly tone that made me miss Renee. I made a mental note to email her later.

I notice Alice had perched herself on the stairway. Down the stairs came a tall and lean blonde. Stopping behind Alice, he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her against him. Jasper. Then his eyes met mine. They were full of curiosity.

"Bella." His voice had a gentle, southern drawl. "I am Jasper. How are you? Alice has been quite excited about your arrival. It's hard to house any other emotion when Alice is excited." He said, while lovingly glancing to the crown of Alice's head.

His charm and charisma halted my response. Finally, I got out a simple "fine." He truly is a southern gentleman. Alice was lucky to have somebody who cared so much for her. I glanced shyly up towards Edward. If only I could find the love of _my _life, my partner in crime…I silently laughed. Edward would have to quit his day job if he were to be my partner in crime. How ironic that would be?

Noticing my slight laughter, Edward turned his gaze to meet mine. He gave me a reassuring smile before his attention was captured by a loud sound in a distant room.

"Emmett!" A loud shriek came from the apparent female voice. That _must_ have been Rosalie. Esme huffed a loud sigh before heading to the commotion.

"Its not my fault Rose! Jasper said it would work!" I could hear the slightly pathetic begging come from Emmett. I had to stifle my laughter.

Everyone cautiously made his or her way to what must have been the kitchen. In an earlier observation, I might have noted how homey the kitchen looked. But that would have been an _earlier_observation. Now, the whole kitchen was covered in flour. Cabinets, counters, the fridgerator, the stove, the table…everything was covered in flour. The phrase, '_Everything and the kitchen sink' _came to mind. Even _that_ had flour in it, but it was caked around the base and edges from the slight wetness of the area.

Through the cloud of white powder, my eyes adjusted to two white figures in the middle of the kitchen. I was amazed to see Rosalie and Emmett standing there so still. They almost looked like statues, except for the slight trembling of Rosalie. Her anger rolled off her in waves of heat almost.

She stomped her foot, sending up a gust of flour. A frustrated "Ahhh!" came from her ghost white mouth. She then whirled around and stomped out of the room. It was quiet for a minute. Esme cleared her throat, pulling Emmett back to reality. Horror washed across his face. He was about to take off after Rosalie before he noticed me.

"Hey Bella, nice to finally meet you. We'll have to talk later." And with that he ran from the room, following Rosalie's white footsteps.

Edward turned towards me, "Well, now that you've met the whole family, do you want to run screaming now?" Edward made an act of extending his hand around the kitchen.

"Nah, I think I'm gonna have fun here." I said with a smile. I looked over to Esme. Surprisingly, she wasn't very angry at all. "Esme, would you like me to help clean this up?"

She seemed surprised I even suggested it. "Bella! You're our guest. You don't have to do anything. Emmett is going to be doing most of it anyways." She said looking towards the pair of white footprints.

"Don't worry, I want to help." I said. "So…where should we start?"

* * *

MPOV Waco, TX

Benito's current numbers were in the twenties, but I can't be for sure. When we were still in Houston, it was practically impossible to decifer his exact numbers. Since the war he has been religiously rebuilding his newborn army.

For the past few days, Nettie, Lucy, and I have slowly been traveling north. We are currently stopped in Waco.

"We need to hunt. We can't just keep going on like this. Let's go into town and have a nice dinner." Lucy suggested.

"What are we going to do about our numbers? When are we going to rebuild?" Nettie asked, while washing her hands in the stream.

"Like I said before, we are heading north, where we are going to settle down for a bit. If we find some _worthy_ human on the way, then we can bring them along. But we can't change too many on our trip. We need a stable environment to tame and teach them in." I grimace at the thought of teaching so many newborns _all over again_! When will we catch a break?

I was deep in thought and strategy when Lucy stood up. "I think someone is coming."

Nettie joined her for a moment, then added, "Yeah, and they're definitely _not_ human. I think its other vampires. What should we do?" She asked, turning in my direction.

"How many do you think there are?" I asked Lucy. She had the best sense of smell.

She took a deep breath, closing her eyes in the process. Luckily the wind was blowing in our direction. "Three. Definitely three."

"Do you recognize them?" I asked.

She took another breath. "No, they're probably nomads." Good, at least it wasn't Benito or any of his henchmen.

By now, they were only a few miles away. "We'll stay here. Surely if it comes down to a fight, our experience will prevail." I said.

We waited a minute, a _long_, tense minute. Now we could hear them clearly in the distance. They were slowing down. They sensed our presence.

Out of the trees came three dark figures. I stood, placing myself between Nettie and Lucy, signifying I was in charge.

They were in a triangular form, their leader in the front. He was a tall, olive-toned man. His black hair was short and glossy, but with a little hint of wave. His clothing held a few minor rips here and there. The second male also had cropped hair, but it was light brown. He was also paler than the first. He wore a blue jean jacket that was open, exposing his muscled chest, but his beauty was nothing compared to that of the first male. Finally, I noted the female. She was the palest of all. Her wild, red hair was quite disheveled. Occasionally, she glanced over to the second male, which made me rethink my guess on who the leader was.

They stopped twenty feet away from us. The first male smiled, easing the tension. He began his introductions. "Hello." His accent was smooth and flowing; definitely foreign to America, perhaps French. "My name is Laurent. To my left is James, and to my right is Victoria. We were just passing through the area for an evening meal." The words flowed from his mouth like silk. Nettie shifted forward slightly. I noticed Victoria was intensely staring at James, who was staring at me. Narrowing my eyes, I began my introductions.

"I am Maria." Laurent smiled, seeming to note my Hispanic accent. "To my left is Lucy. To my right is Nettie." Laurent's smile grew larger at the mention of Nettie. I quickly looked to my right, seeing a smile plastered across Nettie's face. I internally sighed; somehow I had a feeling we weren't going to go our separate ways tonight. Then an idea crossed my mind. Perhaps these nomads, if that is what they are, will be willing to join us. It would certainly make training easier to have experienced vampires helping. A sly smile found its way to my lips. But before I made an offering, we should get acquainted with them better.

"We too were about to engage in a hunt for dinner. Perhaps, you would like to join us." I suggested, looking to my left and right for the approval of my comrades. They nodded in agreement. I refocused my gaze upon James, who was clearly their true leader. His smile grew wider. He stepped forward.

"Laurent." He gave his command. With that, Laurent stepped back beside Victoria, who edged forward slightly, clearly nervous. "You can't trust everyone you meet." He explained his reasoning.

* * *

BPOV

Two hours, three brooms, plenty of paper towels, three trash bags, and one scolded Emmett later, we were done cleaning the kitchen. Sadly, we couldn't rid ourselves completely of all the flour. Some of it still clung to our clothes.

"Hey Bella, come on up here with me. I have an outfit you can change into." I looked down at my outfit. It was a sad sight. My black button up was gray; it had _that_ much flour on it. My jeans were splotchy also. I followed Alice up one flight of stairs. Behind me was the other six. They too were changing.

I entered a room behind Alice. So this was her bedroom. Jasper came in after me and walked over to a dresser. He got some clothes out and left the room. _Oh…_so this is Alice _and_ Jasper's room.

I realized I had lost Alice. I quickly scanned the room. Maybe I went to the wrong one after all and Alice was actually next-door. Maybe this was Jasper's room. I was fixing to leave when I heard shuffling come from behind a door. Then Alice popped out with a blue sequined halter-top, a pair of hip-hugging jeans, and a pair of stilettos. Now, I _did_ leave the room.

I heard a thump. "Bella! Wait!" She yelled, running after me.

I turned around shaking my head. "No Alice! I'm not wearing _that_."

"Why? It would look great on you." She asked innocently.

"I don't know if Edward's told you, but I am _dangerous_. Put me in a pair of high-heels and call me a nuclear bomb!" I cried exasperated, yet slightly scared.

"Fine. We'll switch shoes. Now come on." She said waving me back to the room. She once again disappeared into the closet. This time I followed her. I stepped inside the doorway, and thought I stepped into a department store. How could somebody have _this much_ clothing?

"What about these?" She asked hold up a pair of clogs.

"No. How about I just wear these?" I said, referring to my current shoes. "Don't you just have a plain t-shirt and some sweats I could put on until I leave?"

Alice seemed to go into shock. "Rosalie!" Within seconds, Rosalie was entering the closet.

"What is it Alice?" Rosalie asked.

"Take Bella and dress her." She said in a far off gaze.

"Why can't you dress her? It's what you wanted, isn't it?" Rosalie asked, completely confused. Apparently, she had never seen this side of Alice.

"I can't do it now. I can't concentrate…Rosalie! She wanted to wear a t-shirt and sweats!" At that Rosalie flinched.

"What? What is so bad about comfortable clothes?" Now _I_ was confused!

Rosalie shook her head and grabbed my hand. I followed her to her room. I could hear the shower going. Emmett must be cleaning up. "Stay here." Rosalie disappeared into another room, probably another mammoth closet.

A moment later, she came out with a graphic tee and a normal looking pair of jeans. Finally, some comfort!

I quickly changed. Happy with the new outfit, I stepped out of the closet to find Rosalie sitting on the bed. When she noticed me, she smiled. "Hey, sorry I didn't get to introduce myself earlier. I was a little distracted, if you couldn't tell." She said with a sheepish smile.

"That's alright. It was a lot to deal with." I was happy to finally have everyone's approval.

"Well, let's get downstairs. I'm sure everyone else is already down there." She said.

I once again followed her down the hall and down the steps. Everyone was in the living room, dressed in fresh clothes. Rosalie, who seemed to have forgiven Emmett, went and sat in his lap in the floor. I went and sat next to Edward on the loveseat. He gave me an amused smile and nodded his head towards Alice. I looked over and saw that she was staring at me intently. She got up and walked towards me, appearing to examine my outfit.

"Well, at least it's not a pair of _sweats_." She said it like it was the most disgusting and humiliating word in the English language. She then retreated back towards Jasper. Then she spoke again, "I _will_ fix your problem, Bella. Don't worry. I'm here to help you now. Rest assured." Then she returned her eyes to her earlier glazed expression. Maybe I had done something wrong, but the smile on Edward's face told me otherwise. He grabbed my hand with his, placing them in my lap.

Emmett finally spoke up, "So Bella, you like catapults?"

**A/N: Reviews are nice! So, after some proofreading, I realized that when I was describing the house, I was definitely rhyming :) I hope you liked it. Progressions are being made! And I also realized how much I liked writing as Maria, or maybe it's just writing as a vampire in general. We're going to have fun later :)**


	10. Flour Fetish

**A/N: I know. That was fast. I just want to get to the really good stuff :)**

BPOV

Emmett finally spoke up, "So Bella, you like catapults?"

His question caught me off guard. That's something I've never really asked myself. Never planned on it either…

"Ummm…I guess. Why?" I was officially confused.

Emmett's smile grew into a devilish grin. "Because…I have one!"

Rosalie was starting to get fed up again. "Emmett. Don't you think you have had enough fun for _one_ day?"

"Aw, Rosie. Like I said earlier, Jasper told me the whifferpuffer would work." Emmett pleaded.

"Well apparently both of you were wrong!" She had her hands on her hips; she was really laying into him.

"Look, Rose, the catapult works. We tested it out earlier. I just want to show Bella. Please?" Emmett was on his knees, hands interlocked in front of him, pleading intensely to Rosalie.

She looked like she was about to give. "Oh fine, you big bear! Go do it. But _you_ are cleaning up the mess!" Almost like she couldn't help herself, a smirk appeared on her face. She really did love him.

"Great! Come on Bella! Jasper, get the flour." He ordered as he excitedly walked outside. Again with the flour! I was _not_ helping to clean this mess up. Alice huffed, eyeing my outfit with unease. Then, out of the blue, her face lit up and she started sprinting up the stairs. "Have fun, Bella!" was her departing words.

Edward stood up, stretching his hand out to me. I took it, allowing him to pull me up from the couch. Slowly, he wrapped his arm around my waist, pulling me slightly closer. I snuck my hand around _his_ waist, pulling myself even closer. I was rewarded with a smile and a chuckle. Realizing how much confidence my act of brevity took, a blush quickly crept up my face.

"Bella! Come on…" I could hear Emmett whining like an impatient two-year old.

"We better get going, don't want the big baby to start crying." Edward joked. We made our way outside. I noticed Emmett was standing next to Edward's car, also next to that wooden contraption. Ah…so that's what that was.

* * *

EPOV

Emmett was going to make a complete fool out of himself. The one and only time they had tested out the catapult resulted in a huge mess. The idiots used flour for _everything_! That's not the best thing to use when the objective is to fling something so many feet, only to have it land with great impact. It's going to be a repeat of this morning all over again. Although, it was kinda fun. Maybe I could use this to my advantage…

* * *

BPOV

Emmett had the catapult in place with three bags of bundled flour strapped to it.

"Emmett, fling it _away_ from my car…" Edward growled in a menacing tone.

Emmett stuck his hands in the air like he was surrendering, and turned the catapult in the opposite direction. I glanced up at Edward, seeing a smug smile on his face. He leaned down and whispered into my ear, "you're going to enjoy this." A cold chill ran down my back as his breath tickled my ear and neck. His smile now was quite mischievous.

"Ready Jasper?" Emmett called from the lever.

"Almost…there! Got it! Whenever you're ready…" Quickly, Jasper backed up a couple of feet to stand next to us.

Emmett strapped on a pair of goggles and gripped the lever. "Ready…aim…fire!" And with that, he jerked the lever back swiftly, causing the arm the held the flour to swing upwards. Then, it all went wrong. Instead of flinging the flour off into the distance, the arm continued its motion until it was swinging downward. It released the bundle five feet above the ground, sending the flour slamming with great force into the ground only a few feet away from us. All three bags busted with a bang! Flour shot up in the air into a big cloud. It almost looked like a white mushroom cloud. Quickly the flour shot over towards us, covering Emmett once again.

Edward pulled my body against his, but not fast enough to miss the big puff of flour that hit our faces. We stayed like that until the cloud of flour settled to the ground. The whole time, I was laughing. Soon, Edward joined in, probably relieved that I wasn't mad. We finally separated, only to find Jasper on the ground, bum in the air, and hands clasped behind his head. Emmett was still holding onto the lever, he looked like he was in shock. All of us were covered head to toe in flour.

Jasper looked up and shook the flour out of his shaggy hair, sending a small puff in the air. Emmett finally snapped out of his trance, removing the goggles from his face, revealing a clean area around his eyes.

"Well crap guys! I thought it would work." He started to examine the defective contraption.

Jasper stood up and gave us an apologetic, yet amused look. "Sorry guys. I thought we had it that time. I swear, I looked up all the techniques from previous experiments, but they didn't work." He was baffled. Then his face lit up, like an idea dawned on him. "Of course!" Then he shuffled towards the house, mumbling ideas and renovations.

I looked at the yard. Everything in a twenty foot radius to the contraption was covered in flour. What is up with Emmett and flour? Does he have some kind of weird fetish? I looked up at Edward, who still had his arm around me. His gaze was on his car. I looked at the Volvo for the first time, and was shocked to see it too, was covered in the white powder.

Edward then smiled and looked down at me.

"Why are you smiling? Look at your car. Aren't you mad?" I asked.

"Nah, the car doesn't matter now. Sure, it's a little painful to look at, but I know what will fix that." He turned his body towards mine, placing his hands on my hips, pulling me closer. His face was completely white, but I could still see his eyes, and they were…smoldering? He placed his thumb on my lips and brushed away some of the flour. Then slowly, his face lower down towards mine.

His lips met mine softly, and then he deepened it, moving his hands up my back. My hands didn't know where else to go but to his hair. I pulled our bodies as close as they would go. Besides the flour, he tasted wonderful. Our lips moved together in a dancing motion, like we belonged together. I was elated. Kissing Edward was one of the best experiences I've ever had.

We pulled apart, both of us panting for air. I didn't want to stop, but I remembered we had an audience. I looked over to Emmett. He had a smile the size of Texas plastered across his white face.

My mean side revealed itself in my irritation for the end of the kiss and for Emmett's smug smile. "Have fun cleaning your mess up!" Emmett's smile vanished, leaving a depressed expression in its place. I grabbed Edward's hand and led him inside.

As soon as I stepped inside the doorway, I realized my mistake. Alice! She came bounding down the stairs with multiple shirts in her hands.

"Come on Bella! We need to get you changed. I knew this was going to happen. Anytime Emmett finds Esme's stash of flour—which she has to hide because of Emmett—there is always a mess. Now, come on. I promise, it will be better than earlier." She darted back up the stairs quickly.

Edward looked down apologetically at me. He brought his hand to my face, cupping my cheek. I leaned into his warm hand, closing my eyes, and enjoying the tingling sensation that only his touches could cause.

Someone cleared his or her throat. I looked around to find Rosalie at the bottom of the steps. Her smile was genuine. "You might want to get a move on up here. Alice has big plans." I sighed in defeat and followed her up to Alice's room.

I had only known these people for a few hours and I already felt a connection to them. They truly were a family, even if they were adopted. And no matter how pushy Alice was, I still liked her company. I could tell we were going to be good friends.

* * *

EPOV

I had finally done it. I kissed Isabella Marie Swan. Her sweet lips molded to mine perfectly, almost like we were made for each other. When Alice and Rosalie took her from me, it was almost painful to lose the contact that I had with her.

She was all I thought about while getting cleaned up. I couldn't stop thinking about her, and quite frankly, I don't care if she's all that crosses my mind forever. She is so close, yet so far away, even in the same house. No doubt Alice would be furious if I went into her room and stole Bella. No, better be good.

Finally clean, I decided to wait down in the living room, maybe watch some TV, and get my mind on other things. Emmett and Jasper were already down there. Emmett was playing some video game and Jasper had his notebook out, redesigning the catapult. He truly was a creative mind. He was the inventor, and Emmett was the tester. They really were a dynamic duo.

Emmett finally noticed my presence. "So Eddie-boy…like that kiss did ya?"

I sat down next to him and punched his arm. That only made him laugh. "It's about time you did something. I've seen the way you look at her. I was getting impatient for you."

"Whatever Emmett."

Then, we heard footsteps on the stairs. I immediately looked up. Alice was bouncing down, followed by Rosalie. A few seconds later, Bella emerged at the top of the stairs. She was breath taking. She wore a midnight blue blouse with sleeves that started at the middle of her shoulder, revealing a tantalizing portion of her neck. It was quite form fitting, and took everything in me not to run over and grab her up. She was unbelievably beautiful. She slowly descended the stairs one at a time, so that she didn't trip.

The wait was unbearable. I got up and started walking towards her. I met her at the bottom of the steps and pulled her into my arms. The instantaneous relief was great. Now that I had her in my arms, I felt back in control. I could finally breath again.

**Awe, that was sweet. But reviews are sweeter!**


	11. I Love You, You Love Me

**A/N: So, I know it's short...but it's _really_ sweet :) I think this chapter may be my favorite so far. Thanks for the reviews. They are what made this chapter happen. How about that? Three chapters in two days, all thanks to you guys :)**

BPOV

One week later…

This previous week has been the best week of my life. After Edward and I shared our first kiss, we were inseparable. That first night, all we did was cuddle. I've never felt as comfortable and safe as I do when I'm in _his_ arms. They are where I want to spend the rest of my life, but I haven't told him that yet.

So far, neither of us has spoken those three words. But I know, in my heart, that they are true for me. I just hope it's the same for him. I desperately want to tell him, but the fear of rejection is still too strong. I mean, I've only known him for a week and a half, and we had a _very_ rocky beginning. I guess I never expected love to come this easily and with someone as special as Edward, for someone plain like me that is.

Today or tomorrow I should be getting my license back. Just thinking about it makes me a little depressed. Then I won't have as many excuses for Edward to drive me around. Or will I…I've been around Emmett enough this week to pick up on some of his scheming.

"Bella!" Charlie yelled from downstairs. "Edward's here!"

I quickly grabbed my wallet and jacket and ran downstairs—more like tripped—into the arms of the man that I loved.

"Whoa! You need to be more careful." Edward teased, ruffling my hair.

"Maybe I do it _just_ so you'll catch me." I whispered back so Charlie wouldn't hear. Even though he knew Edward and I were dating, it was still awkward to do romantic things in front of him. It was uncomfortable for the both of us.

"Well Bells, I'll be back home around seven. See ya."

"Bye dad!" I said as he walked out the door. As soon as it was shut, my lips were on Edward's. I had felt his lips on mine many times this week, but every time felt like a new experience. I couldn't stop. I was an addict, and I had no intentions of quitting.

His hands wove into my hair, sending intense tingles down my back. He broke the kiss so we could breath, only to reconnect his lips on my cheek, working his way down to my neck, over my collarbone, and back up the other side of my neck and cheek. I moaned. That seemed to push him further and faster, until his lips joined mine again. It felt right. Nothing felt better than this.

Right when I thought I was going to pass out from the excitement, he pulled away, breaking the kiss.

"Isabella Marie Swan." He was out of breath. "I love you." My heart stopped. I felt light-headed. Not a good combination. Dazzling kisses and then the heavily coveted "I love you". I couldn't believe my ears. I tried to say it back, but my tongue felt like mush. I was awestruck. Then everything went black.

5 minutes and 29 seconds later…

I felt something cold against my forehead. Cold and wet. Was I dreaming? As the seconds ticked by, my memory slowly started to fill in. Edward had told me he loved me! And I haven't told him back! He probably thinks I don't feel that way. Oh no! I have to wake up! But I can't move.

"Bella! Can you hear me? Please wake up." Edward was pleading with my unconscious form to get up. Slowly, I started to get feeling back in my body. My eyes fluttered open, I was momentarily blinded by the light.

"Bella!" Edward removed the cold and wet thing from my face, replacing it with his warm hands. Mmmm…I moaned out loud. He chuckled, planting a small kiss on my lips. My eyes finally adjusted to the light and I opened them. I was rewarded with my favorite crooked grin, but somehow it was wrong. Worry was also etched in his perfect face.

"Edward, what's wrong?" I asked.

"Silly girl. You had me worried. You passed out."

"You…told me…you loved me." I whispered, still in awe of the situation.

He looked a little hesitant before replying, "Yes, I did." He shifted his eyes in the other direction. I felt awful.

"Edward," I lifted my hand and turned his face towards mine, looking him in the eye, "I love you, too." I said it with as much conviction as I could manage. I wanted to make up for the few moments that he may have regretted telling me he loved me, thinking I wasn't ready.

He studied my face for a few seconds to gauge my honesty. I smiled to show him I was telling the truth. "I really do love you, Edward. More than anything in this world. More than humanly possible! More than—" his lips cut my words off. Physically, I enjoyed the kiss; internally, I hoped I could stay conscious.

He pulled away, "Don't you ever do that to me again, Isabella. You really had me worried. I was about to call Carlisle. Why did you pass out?" He asked while he helped me sit up on the couch.

"It's your fault really." I told him. He was shocked. "If you hadn't been kissing me so passionately and dazzling me, I would have still been conscious. And then, you tell me you love me! How am I not supposed to pass out from excitement? Those have been the very words I was looking for. And they came when I was half gone already. The final blow!" I said the last part as dramatically as possible, throwing my arms across my forehead, feigning exhaust.

"Oh no you don't," he said pulling my arm away, "you're not covering up your face. I'm not done looking at it…or kissing it." He leaned in to kiss me; the anticipation alone was killing me. Then he pulled back.

He was teasing me. "I don't want you to pass out again." He joked.

I wasn't having that. I pounced on him.

"Whoa! Where did that come from?" His tone was playful, yet husky.

I seductively purred. "Well, you're mine now. I can do whatever I want to you." I leaned down and nuzzled his neck. His responding moan was music to my ears.

"Really? And what do you plan on doing to me?" His voice was a low, seductive whisper.

I pulled his hands up above his head and held them there with one of mine. It was quite easy; there was _no_ struggling on his part. "Keep you captive." I started kissing along his neck. Teasingly, I bit it. He gasped, then pulled his hands free from mine and brought them around my back.

I was about to nibble on his ear when his phone started ringing. We both let out groans of frustration. By the ring tone, I knew it was Alice. Curse her and her bad timing, or evil ways, however you wanted to look at it.

I slid off the couch, and sadly off of Edward. His face fell as he fumbled around in his pockets for the phone.

"Hello." He practically growled. There wasn't much I was going to get from this one-sided conversation, so I went upstairs to fix my hair. It had become quite a mess.

With that complete, I went back downstairs, hopefully finding out what we are going to do today. Edward was still on the couch, so I went and sat next to him. He wrapped his arm around me and gave me a quick kiss on the lips.

"What did Alice want?"

"She's made some plans for the six of us tonight."

Normally, that would sound good, but this is Alice we're talking about. Her plans are probably going to involve me wearing some contraption of an outfit. I hope it's comfortable…

**So, I hope you liked that. It wasn't a lemon, but it was still tangy. I left the last part open for suggestions. So, feel free to suggest.**


	12. A Little Dessert?

**A/N: I do not own Twilight. Anyways, I'm here, trying once again. My writing style might have changed considering I'm not in the "Meyer mood." Oh well…this is me, sitting with my mom in ICU at the hospital trying to continue this thing.**

BPOV

_"What did Alice want?"_

_"She's made some plans for the six of us tonight."_

_Normally, that would sound good, but this is Alice we're talking about. Her plans are probably going to involve me wearing some contraption of an outfit. I hope it's comfortable…_

The drive to Edward's house was peaceful. It had just started to rain, as usual, and the sweet smell of the greenery was once again dancing through the air. In the beginning, the vast greenery was a little overwhelming, but now I have learned to enjoy what nature has to offer.

I felt Edward's fingers lace through mine, warming them up. I looked over and gave him the warmest smile possible, just to show how content I was with our current situation. No matter what's going on, I always feel comfortable with Edward. I guess nature has more than one beauty to offer.

"Bella? How do you feel about camping?" Edward tentatively asked.

I shyly looked around, avoiding eye contact. I had never been one for the out doors. I mean, I love the scenery, but I don't think it enjoys me quite as much. "Well, I've never really been." I gave him a quick smile, knowing that eventually he was going to find out the extent of my clumsiness.

"Really? I figured Charlie might have taken you one summer when you came to visit."

I laughed. "Charlie always said that he wasn't afraid of a bear finding us, he was afraid of me finding the bear." I remembered the fond memories Charlie and I shared, him teasing me about my affinity to get into sticky situations.

"Oh really?" Edward laughed at my memory as well. "I can image Charlie saying something like that." He reaching over and gave my leg a squeeze before reclaiming my hand. He worked small circles into the back of my hand for the rest of the drive to his house, probably sensing my slight nervousness about the whole camping ordeal.

Pulling up into his driveway I noticed a rather large jeep parked in front of the garage. The jeep seemed to be piled high with camping gear and equipment, equipment I knew I shouldn't go around knowing that I would either break it, or it would break me.

Rosalie stepped out of the garage and headed towards the jeep, popping the hood. At first I noticed the grease smeared on her face, chest, arms, and legs, but then I noticed how _good_ it looked on her. I shook my head, knowing that I would never be pretty enough to pull off the sexy car mechanic in a tank and short shorts.

My unhappy thoughts soon disappeared when Edward grabbed my chin with his hand and turned my face towards him. I looked into his eyes as long as possible, relishing the way they looked at me. Occasionally they would glance down at my lips and nose, but they never left my eyes for more than a second. The fire inside my body started to burn. It was as if his eyes were the cause for everything. I could feel the warmth start in my stomach and slowly spreading out, first to my legs and chest, then my arms, and finally my face. I'm sure, by the look on Edward's face, that I was blushing, but I didn't care. I edged closer to him and touched the tip of my nose to his. His eyes closed at the ever so slight contact and curled his lips. My heart fluttered at the intimate, yet innocent contact we shared. I started to nuzzle against his face. His sigh of contentment finally made my body burst into flames. My lips made contact with his face as quickly as possible. I kissed him everywhere, on the cheeks, the nose, his forehead, his chin…I was spiraling out of control, but had no plans of ever slowing down. I stopped my attack only long enough to entangle my hands in his hair and smile. Our lips crashed together and fell into a hurried, yet sensual rhythm. He licked my lips with his warm tongue, causing my mouth to fall open and devour his sweet taste. We both started to pant and become frantic. I couldn't stop touching him. If I did, the fire would disappear, and right now that fire that Edward stirred in me was the best feeling I had ever had. The feeling of being wanted, desired, coveted…I never wanted our passion to end.

Realizing we might be potentially making a scene, we slowed down. He began to sooth me by softly stroking my face. Soon, he had me feeling just about the consistency of jelly and I just propped my head up upon his to slow my own breathing.

He caught my gaze and started softly shaking his head, "You are…amazing. I can't tell you how alive you make me feel. Bella, you make me the happiest man on earth, did you know that?" He pinched my chin and playfully licked my nose.

I sucked in my breath when the wave of heat flashed through my body. "I feel the same Edward. I find it increasingly harder to leave every time we part." I stared deep into his eyes, willing him to see how true my words were.

"That's why I want you to come camping with us." He smiled slyly. "We could even share a tent…" My eyes widened in a mixture of shock and lust.

"Well then, when do we leave?" I asked enthusiastically, giving him a wink.

"Hellooo," a little voice behind me said, quickly followed by a rapping on the car window. I jumped in my seat, startled by the small figure standing behind me. Regaining my breath I noticed it was Alice. I narrowed my eyes. She laughed in response. "Come on silly! We have to hurry up and finish packing. I have a feeling that this weekend is going to be one of a kind!"

* * *

MPOV Boise, ID

We had been traveling in the company of James, Laurent and Victoria for the past week, slowly making our way far north. The north was nothing like the south, vampire-wise that is. We hardly caught the scent of a vampire in the past few days, whereas we picked up the smell of at least one once a day in the south. Laurent and Nettie quickly took a liking to each other and became mates. At first I figured this was just another one of Nettie's flippant excursions, but I leaned quickly Laurent was different. His personality completely captured her to where she was basically wrapped around his finger. But that wasn't to say she lost her head completely, I made sure of that, reminding her of our mission in the long run.

James, whom I found out was mated to Victoria, is a companionable ally. Once we shared our plan and purpose with the trio, James and Laurent were quickly on board, leaving Victoria to be the cautious one. I believe James is the only reason she is sticking around, and begrudgingly at that. If it weren't for James, I would have no problem disposing of Victoria myself. Her gaze never stopped piercing me, watching my every move. Her eyes are blood red like the rest of ours, but somehow hers are different, more vile and dangerous. A deeper, carnal, violent pair of eyes have never laid sight upon me until now. James, though, seems completely oblivious to her actions. He and I occasionally talk about the future and the plan to build an army up north, ultimately to crush Benito and his band of demons.

"Ready for dessert?" James raised his brows to see if I was up to the invitation. Typically, after meals, I enjoy going out in the forest and hunting the hunters. I typically go for the fox, simply because it is the only animal blood I can stand. The flavor of a fox is more gamey than that of a human, yet it has a slight minty tang as well, so it is treated as dessert.

"Sure! But when we get back we better keep on moving. I want to be farther north by the weekend." I got up and started off into the forest, letting James follow comfortably behind me.

"Maria? Have you made your decision on where you want to go?" James asked me right before I caught the sweet aroma of my dear friend Mr. Fox.

Ignoring him completely, I focused in on a nearby fallen tree. Inside the log, I could see the red face staring out at me, whether it was in anger or fear, I didn't know, nor did I care. I circled the log a few times to get the heart rate of the tiny animal up. I found that when the creature is scared, it tastes better, sweeter, irresistible. When I'd had enough, I finally dove for the opening and grabbed the creature by the neck, making my attack quick and painless.

Once done, I looked up at James and licked my lips to savor the remaining taste. "I was thinking Washington."

**A/N: Ok, personally, I don't really like writing about the hunting process. It was a little weird and I felt sooo bad for the poor fox ****L But I thought I'd give it a try anyways.**


	13. The Wonders of Chocolate

**A/N: I don't own Twilight.**

MPOV Boise, ID

_Once done, I looked up at James and licked my lips to savor the remaining taste. "I was thinking Washington."_

James watched me stand and dust the dirt off my pant leg, while I watched him stare at me, unabashed. I knew what he was thinking without even being a mind reader. I could see it in his eyes as they infinitesimally grew darker. His breathing sped up as his eyes roamed every inch of my body. I began to feel uncomfortable underneath his scrutinizing gaze, knowing now, _this_ was the reason Victoria hated me.

"We had better get back to the others." I said, wanting nothing more than an escape from the situation.

He tilted his head to the side and smiled, "but I haven't had my dessert yet." His body turned to completely face me; his eyes narrowing as he slowly crouched to spring. Instinct overcame me as I let a growl burst loose and lunged to the right, just as he swung past me. I circled around as soon as I made contact with the ground and braced myself for his attack. But he was not where I expected him to be. One hundred yards in front of me James was huddling over a deer, having…dessert. If my heart was still functional I would have been a complete mess right now.

After a few deep breaths, allowing myself to calm down, I let out a small nervous laugh. Something seemed off about James. Maybe my instinct had been wrong, and he wasn't looking at me in any particular way? I couldn't know exactly at this point, but something was wrong.

Finally, James lifted from his crouch and sauntered towards me. I was still in my defensive crouch position when he reached me. "Are you alright, Maria?" He asked, extending his hand. I looked at his hand, could I trust him? His gaze penetrated mine. Realizing I was potentially making a fool out of myself, I grabbed his hand and let him pull me up. It wasn't that I needed to be pulled up, I would have just felt rude not accepting his…kind offer.

"Yeah, I'm good. But I think we should really head back to the group now. Okay?" I asked him, nodding my head slightly to encourage his compliance.

"Of course…but Maria, what's in Washington?" He tilted his head curiously to the side.

"Well, when we get back to the group I will explain everything in detail. Is that fine with you?" I asked, getting slightly annoyed with his questions.

"Perfectly fine with me," he flashed his white teeth at me and turned to head back to our little encampment. He left me standing there in the twilight of the evening. A breeze blew by bringing the chill with it. I had lived in the south my whole human and vampire life, and even though the cool air didn't bother me, it would still take some getting used to. I laughed to myself, thinking about how I was going to handle the winter here in the north, with plenty of hungry newborns to tame and teach.

I started a slow walk back to camp, allowing myself to ponder over the day's events with James and the near impending future.

* * *

BPOV

The next two hours were…well, crazy! Alice had me running through her closet with her finding all these skimpy bathing suits, short shorts, tank tops…basically anything with a minimal amount of fabric. Fortunately she was running late, which meant she didn't get to follow through on her wishes to give me a make-over and do my hair. I tried to reason with her that the last thing I need done is my face, hair and nails if I'm going camping. Someone began knocking on the door.

"Oh great, it's that big lug trying to steal you away!" She mumbled as she continued rummaging through her closet. The knocking continued. "Oh fine, come on in!" She chimed in exasperation as she carried a heavy load of cloths to her bed to sort.

Edward's head popped in the doorway, causing me to smile like a fool. "Bella, would you like to come down to the kitchen and sit with me before we leave. Esme made hot chocolate." His voice and eyes lit up at the word chocolate to persuade me to follow him. Silly man, like I need to be enticed with chocolate to go anywhere with him…although it would be a nice side item. I kept myself from grinning like a cat as I walked towards the door.

"Someone's blushing…" he mentioned quietly. I felt like the cat that ate the canary. I didn't plan on sharing my thoughts on him and chocolate anytime soon.

"Oh, well, I did just get through moving mountains of clothing. Can't I be a little flushed?" I flashed him a grin and skipped on ahead of him down the hallway, hoping and praying I didn't trip on the air.

* * *

EPOV

I watched from behind as she innocently scampered down the hall…innocent, right! I knew there was strong physical attraction between Bella and I, I just had to make sure I did everything right and not too soon. I wanted to make sure this relationship lasted, because I too find it hard to leave, even for a minute, when I'm around her.

"Hardly an invitation if you're not coming as well," her bottom lip pouted out as she stood by the banister, beckoning me with her chocolate eyes. Oh what I could do with that girl and chocolate…

"Of course," I flashed her a crooked smile. "I wouldn't want you to have to sit alone." I was quickly by her side again and wrapped my hand around her waist, pulling her close as well walked down the stairs.

"Hello Bella! I didn't know you were up there!" Esme gave Bella a soft hug before returning to her cup of hot chocolate. "How could I have missed you?" Esme wondered in amazement.

"Well, Alice _did _kidnap her for about two hours, so I don't think you should be worrying anytime soon about memory loss Esme." I enjoyed joking with my sweet aunt. She has always been there for me, and we do have a close bond.

"Bella, dear, would you like some hot chocolate? Edward?" Esme held up two coffee mugs my their handles as she shrugged her shoulders.

"Yes, I would love some, Esme!" Bella enthusiastically replied, making me laugh at how much energy she put into one sentence. I couldn't resist tickling her side a little while Esme ladled us out some hot chocolate.

"Here you go you two," Esme handed us our cups. "Now, I will warn you two, I'm straightening up the kitchen before we leave so-" I cut Esme off.

"Ummm, we'll go into the living room until every one is finished." I quickly ushered Bella out of the kitchen and into the hall. Halfway to the living room she turned around on me and narrowed her eyes.

"What was _that_ about?" She asked, putting one hand on her hip, tapping her little foot. There is no way I will ever be able to resist her and her cute, sexy, sweet, caring ways…

"Trust me Bella, Esme in the kitchen is just like Alice in a closet. You will never escape! Although escape usually isn't desired when she's on her cooking rampage, but this is different, she is on a cleaning rampage." I nodded my head to show her how serious I was.

"She didn't seem any different than the last time I was over." She seemed puzzled.

"Only because you're new," I smiled, "and my girlfriend, who is looking very sweet right now." Bella's eyes brightened up. "So sweet, I could just eat her!" I quickly sat my hot chocolate down and started to chase her through to the living room, being careful not to make her spill her drink. Then Esme would _really_ be on a cleaning spree.

Bella made it to the other side of the couch and quickly sat her drink down, preparing for my attack. Cunningly I stalked around the couch. In front of me was a luscious woman that _needed_ to be attacked, and I was going to be the one to do it. I reached the back of the couch when she bolted to the front. Unfortunately, Bella's feet didn't exactly follow the plan and decided to stay glued, so she started to go down. Somehow I managed to reach out and catch her. I pulled her up against me and held her close. Her face looked up at mine. Her soft eyes thanking me, her cheeks staining my favorite shade of red, and her tongue flicking out to nervously wet her luscious lips. I think she needs a little help.

I lowered my face to hers, brushing my lips across hers. I felt her body give slightly with a sigh. I felt her hands snake around the back of my neck and caress the back of my head. I placed my hands on the small of her back and pulled her hard against me. She felt amazing that close to my body, only clothes separating us now…

* * *

BPOV

After Edward pulled me against himself I had to catch my breath. My heart fluttered so fast I thought I might pass out. He had never been this aggressively passionate with me, and I loved it. The same heat as earlier started to burn my body. My breathing grew ragged as I allowed my hands to fall down his back and wander up his shirt. He pulled me harder against his body as my fingers traveled up his smooth, warm, muscled back. I felt his hands slide down and caress my backside, squeezing it, pulling my groin harder against his. The fire burst into flames inside me causing me to moan. All the sudden he quickly backed away from me. I opened my eyes in surprise.

"What's the matter?" I couldn't stop the embarrassed flush that invaded my face. The heat that warmed my whole body just a few seconds ago rushed to my face, burning me alive. I was mortified that I had done something wrong. Tears started to flood my eyes, and I couldn't do a darn thing to stop them.

Edward noticed and quickly rushed over, "Bella, Bella! What are you crying for? Please love, don't cry!" He tried to comfort me by stroking my face softly with his fingers, while wiping away the tears. "What's wrong, Bella?" His face looked distressed. I reached out tentatively to touch it.

"Edward? Did I do something wrong?" I must have. One minute I was ready to burst with passion, then the next I was standing alone. His brows furrowed together.

"What do you mean? You think _you_ did something wrong?! Bella, trust me, you did nothing wrong. Everything you did was perfect, and right, and exactly what I wanted." He sighed. It seemed he was disappointed with himself. "Bella, I was the one to do something wrong. I wasn't prepared."

"Prepared for what?" I was no longer sad or worried, just a little confused.

"For the feelings you make me experience. Bella, when you were that close to me, rubbing against me…it felt _amazing_! And personally, I'm not ashamed to say I want it again. I was just unprepared for the intensity of the feeling. That's all."

At his words, I felt my stomach tighten in anticipation for doing that again with him. I couldn't control my eyes as they roamed around his body. I couldn't help but notice the bulge in his pants either. I immediately got the urge to touch him…everywhere!

"Hey guys! Are you all ready to head out?" Alice happily chirped behind me. My heart dropped knowing this amazing moment had been interrupted. Edward caressed my cheek, then grabbed my hand.

"Yeah," he replied for the both of us, "we are ready!"

"Great! You two will be riding with Carlisle, Esme, Jasper, and I in the SUV, while Rosalie and Emmett drive the equipment in the jeep. Sound good?" Alice's smile was bright enough to light up the night sky.

"Sounds great, Alice. And did you remember those cookies?" Edward smiled an evil grin. "Those two hours weren't free you know."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah…I got your stinkin' cookies! Just get in the car best brother." She sent a sickly sweet smile his way before bouncing off.

I turned to Edward, "where have Jasper, Emmett, and Carlisle been?"

"Oh, sorry I didn't mention it before, but they went into town to the Newton's outdoors store to grab a few more things. I guess they got a little carried away. But they are outside now, waiting for us." He finished with a kiss on my nose and led me to the front door.

All this in one day. Fortunately I had the previous two hours to call Charlie and tell him, which he was surprised I was going camping, and then straighten up a few things at the house. But I was alright to leave at that moments notice. Oh well, either way this weekend is going to be amazingly fun, or I will die trying to make it happen. At least I'll be with Edward.

**A/N: *bum-bum-buuummm* Mmmm…Bella and Edward sittin in a tree…! Lol!**


	14. The Perfect Evening, The Perfect Feast

**A/N: I don't own Twilight.**

BPOV Olympic National Park

The drive to our camp site was entertaining to say the least. Alice, Esme and I couldn't resist singing with the radio. Every now and then, Edward and Jasper would try to hush us up, but we were unstoppable. At one point Edward held me hostage, tickling me anytime I tried to squirm away from him. Unfortunately for me, I'm just about ticklish everywhere, and he found out. I tried plenty of times to tickle him back, but he never squirmed away, flinched, or anything. He just gave me a triumphant smile and left it at that. I looked to Alice for any ammunition, but she sat there, looking blanked out for about a minute. When she finally came to, her face was etched with a minute amount of worry, then it vanished. As her gaze matched mine, she gave me a wink and turned around in her seat to cuddle with Jasper. I tried not to think about her face, but I couldn't help it. Every now and then, her image would fill my mind at any random silence between Edward and I. I made a mental note to myself to ask her about it, wondering why the usually chipper Alice would be worried.

Carlisle followed Emmett and Rosalie through an old, rotting wooden gate. Immediately the trees became denser, and the sun's rays weren't as easily visible. I rolled down my window to take in the fresh air. It was such a beautiful day outside, with a slight breeze and the fresh smell of the forest. In the distance I saw movement. As I focused in, I realized it was a family of deer, drinking from a small creek. The mother deer was close by her young fawn, which looked like it had just learned how to walk and was still on the wobbly side. Both mother and fawn shifted their gaze in our direction, but the large male deer kept his gaze away from us. As we drove away I watched as his gaze never shifted, and as he stayed still as a statue.

"Beautiful, aren't they?" I felt Edward's breath caress my neck, making the tiny hairs stand erect. I turned to meet his eyes. He flashed his crooked smile before gently sitting his forehead against mine.

"Mmmm…they are very beautiful. The baby was still a little wobbly I noticed. It would have been amazing to see him take his actual first steps." I thought about Bambi and how he slipped on the ice. That part of the movie always cracked me up as a kid. It would have been both amazing and funny, but overall a nice experience.

Edward chuckled, "yeah, I noticed that too. Little fella just needs a little practice, that's all." He brought his lips forward and grazed my nose right before kissing it. In that moment, I felt extremely content. Nothing was going to ruin this experience for me. I laid my head down on his shoulder and watched out the window as Carlisle took multiple twists and turns.

MPOV Olympic National Park

Today felt different. A good kind of different. The air was warm, the sun was out, Victoria was hunting alone…the list goes on and on. I lifted my hand above my head, watching as my wet skin sparkled in the sun. Millions of rays of lights refracted off my stony skin, casting over forty different colors into the wind. A soft breeze blew by, picking up some loose strands of hair and making them dance across my face to the sweet tune of the birds and the whistling of the grass. In the distance I heard a couple of hikers arguing about which trail to take. Unfortunately for them, they were lost, and the wind was not working in their favor. The pain in my throat surged to an absolute scalding burn. I wanted so bad for the hikers to make up their minds and leave already and allow me to continue my peaceful meditation, but they were a newlywed couple, apparently, and decided to verbally duke it out half a mile up wind from me, their worst nightmare.

I waited as the seconds turned to minutes, their annoyed tones turned to anger. If they kept it up, they wouldn't have to worry about which path to take at all, just who could run faster. But that wouldn't help them either…My hand slammed into the boulder beneath me, somehow anchoring my body down. I felt the stone turn to dust beneath my fingers, so I dug harder, clenching my eyes shut. I wasn't ready to give up my disturbed moment of peace, especially since I hadn't got much since joining up with James, but even if the hikers decided to move on, there was no going back. I would have to feed soon, the pain was past bearable.

When it was apparent they still weren't going anywhere, I decided to take matters into my own hands. Grabbing my shirt to my left, I pulled it over my swim suit top and headed against the wind. The closer I got, the clearer their voices became, and the sweeter their blood smelled. The woman, who was clearly the one who wore the pants in the relationship was being very degrading to her husband, who was trying to calm her down, but would fail every so often and become angry. I felt bad for the man. By the tone of his voice, it was apparent he loved her, but couldn't do anything to shut her up. If I had my way, I would drink from just the woman and let the man go, but that most certainly wouldn't work. So I had to be quick with my first and savor the last…Man first to minimize his terror, his wife second. Maybe then she'll shut up…

By now I was about a fifty yards away. I stood stark still behind a tree and focused on my prey. Using my speed, I ran up from behind the man and grabbed his head, breaking his neck, deciding I didn't want to drink from two humans today. The woman barely had an inkling of what was going on by the time I crossed the rotten log that was between them and pulled her back against me, unnecessarily restraining her arms against her chest. I could feel her warm skin through both of our clothes, seeping into my core, warming me slightly. Her neck, exposed by her up-do was slightly beaded with perspiration, but easy access never the less. In a matter of a fourth of a second I had her positioned and brought my teeth to her neck. My teeth slid into her neck like butter, so soft and easy. Immediately the blood rushed into my mouth, wetting my aching throat like water on a hot summer day. The vessel beneath my lips pumped at a faster than normal rate, sending the delicious liquid faster across my tongue. Now I really felt warm. The feeling of drinking from a human was like no other feeling. It was refreshing and made me feel like my body was coming to life each and every time.

The woman was limp in my arms as I drained the last of her. Had I been able to control myself, maybe I would have left some life in both of them and taken them as new additions to my army, but the urge to completely take her was too strong. Plus, by the way they were bickering, I'm sure I would have demolished them after they were vampires, at least her…

I dragged their bodies to a heavily wooded and brushy area very unsuitable for hiking and placed them in a ditch and covered them with many leaves. I normally didn't cover up my tracks because I never stayed in one city for too long, but I planned on hanging out here for awhile.

As I walked out from the bushes I heard two cars in the distance. One engine strong and powerful, the other not so much. Before I found the cars directly with my sight, my eyes landed on a family of deer drinking from the creek. The mother stood close by her young, newborn fawn watching as the car drove down the entrance path to the park. I gazed at the newborn with awe. The first signs of life. Innocence, uncertainty, and a rapid heart beat. The newborn, shaky from unused muscles watched as the car drove by, learning the first signs of danger. But the male buck, knowing the true signs of danger stared away from the car, directly at me. His strong, lean body unmoving, looked like a statue, showing his protection and love for his family. I turned my back on him, walking back towards my boulder, hoping to find a few more moments of peace before the true hunt begins.

BPOV

I sat against a tree with my knees curled against my chest, watching as the men pitched tents. Esme had been stationed next to the Jeep unloading all our cooking material and sorting our personal bags. I had offered to help, but she insisted she was fine, enjoyed it actually and that I should rest or take a walk around our camp. I think it was her way of relaxing, as weird as it seems. Alice and Rosalie left as soon as we got there to "gather" firewood. At first, I felt a little left out when they didn't invite me to join them, but Edward told me they were planning something secret, probably dealing with the two of us. I accepted that excuse, but only because I was fine relaxing against a tree and watching Edward use his muscles!

Four tents and a pile of firewood later, we all decided to go for a swim. Carlisle and Esme opted to stay behind. I got the impression they wanted to test out the tent, but I would never say that aloud. I searched through my bag Alice packed for me and found a rather nice midnight blue two piece. My favorite part about it was it's modesty, for a two piece. I also found a white cover and put it on over my suit. There were no mirrors, obviously, in the tent, but I didn't need one. I felt pretty. Maybe it was because of some newfound confidence, or the fact that there was a man on the other side of my tent who made me feel like the only woman in the world. Either way, I liked the feeling and never wanted it to leave.

I exited my tent and walked straight into the arms of my Edward. Everyone else was still in their respective tents getting ready, so we were alone. Yet, it still didn't seem private enough, like there were eyes everywhere. In the trees, in the wind, in the grass. I just wanted to be alone with him for a minute.

I grabbed his hand and started walking away from our camp site until we were hidden by a few trees. I finally turned to face him and once again melted into his arms. The silence around us was deafening. I felt like the world around us was muted, and all the energy of life was centered on our love in that moment. The intensity between us grew until I had to get as close to him as humanly possible. I pressed my body to his and laid my head against his chest, right beneath his chin. I could hear his strong heart beat pulse through my ears, his warmth radiating into me as his arms coiled protectively around my body, banishing anything other than heat.

"Bella…" He finally spoke. His voice brought my head away from his chest and my eyes to his. "Bella, I can't explain how happy you make me. Please know that these last few weeks have been the best, and all because I have finally found someone to love." He took a deep breath and averted his gaze to take in the forest around us. "I will cherish my every moment with you because they are the most important. Besides, I couldn't possibly think of a better, more loving and sweet person to share this experience with." At his words, I too averted my gaze to the forest around us. I didn't realize how much of the scenery I took for granted every day I lived in Forks, or Washington for that matter.

"Beelllllaaa!" This time, the voice wasn't sweet and loving, but demanding. "Edwaaard!" Alice. No voice could sound so controlling yet tinkly at the same time. I grinned up at Edward. "Guess we better get going, Ranger." I watched as his gaze turned from one of annoyance to hilarity.

"Sure thing, my lady! We better skidaddle before the hungry bear catches up with us!" Edward said in a mocking tone of someone trying to frighten another person. I laughed and play slapped his chest. He raised his eyebrow at me and grinned. I started to slowly back away, but was too late because in one fell swoop he had me slung over his shoulder and heading back to camp. Fortunately my cover was long enough for him to hold against the back of my legs so my behind wouldn't be on display for his whole family.

"There you guys are! Where were you? We are ready to leave!" Alice said quickly, her voice chirping at the end with enthusiasm. "I haven't been swimming in forever! At least it feels like forever." Edward let me down so I could grab my towel.

Down at the the lake, there were only a handful of people, and it looked like they were already leaving. "Bombs away!" Emmett bellowed as he sprinted full force towards the dock. I won't lie, it is a pretty funny thing to see Emmett and his big lumbering body sprint.

His jump from the dock started out unorganized, but then he quickly curled himself into a ball before splashing into the still water. Cannonball or not, it still looked like it hurt. He stayed under for a few seconds before resurfacing with multitude of chants. He then proceeded to tease Jasper and Edward about being wimps and pussies until they dove in after him. It was definitely an interesting start to a fun evening.


End file.
